Amazon introduces humanoid robots to its warehouses, assures workers their jobs are safe

[midian182]

What just happened? Amazon warehouse workers who fear the increasing amount of automation being introduced to the facilities now have two more technologies to worry about, including a humanoid robot that is being trialed. Amazon, of course, insists that the machines are there to decrease delivery times and improve workplace safety, working alongside humans as opposed to putting them out of a job.

Amazon writes that the first of these robots, Sequoia, is now operating at one of its fulfillment centers in Houston, Texas. Bearing an uncanny resemblance to a Roomba, the tech giant says the robot can identify and store inventory received at locations up to 75% faster. It also reduces order processing time by up to 25%.

What's likely to be more of a worry to Amazon warehouse workers is Digit, a 5-foot 9-inch 143-pound robot from Agility Robotics. The two-legged robot can walk forward, backward, and sideways, squat and bend, and move, grasp, and handle items using its arm/hand-like clasps. Its first job will be tote recycling, which Amazon says is a highly repetitive process of picking up and moving totes once they've been emptied of inventory.

Digit, lurking in the background, definitely not about to steal the human's job

Amazon is the second-largest employer in the US behind Walmart. It has a global workforce of almost 1.5 million, one million of whom are in its warehouses. The company has been introducing more technologies to automate human jobs for over ten years now, but it insists the aim is not to replace human workers but to take over monotonous tasks and improve safety.

Tye Brady, the chief technologist at Amazon Robotics, admitted that while the robots will make some warehouse jobs redundant, their deployment will create new ones; a line that is often used when talking about generative AI's threat to jobs. Amazon said that there is "a big opportunity to scale" the likes of Digit, which sounds like more concerning news for workers.

Brady added that those in Amazon's operations are "irreplaceable," and that eliminating mundane, repetitive tasks would not lead to job cuts and fewer staff. He also said that the prospect of a future Amazon warehouse that was fully automated without any human workers would never be a reality.

"People are so central to the fulfillment process; the ability to think at a higher level, the ability to diagnose problems," he said.

"We will always need people […] I've never been around an automated system that works 100% of the time. I don't think you have as well."

Amazon unveiled the AI-powered Sparrow in November last year, its first robot in the Amazon warehouse system able to detect items of different sizes, pick them up, and handle them without significant human intervention.

In June 2022, Amazon announced Proteus, a warehouse robot that, unlike its previous autonomous machines, operates without needing to be confined to a warehouse's restricted (I.e., caged off) areas. Its duties include lifting and moving GoCarts - the large, wheeled cages used to hold items - from one area of a facility to another.

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https://www.techspot.com/news/100550-amazon-introduces-humanoid-robots-warehouses-assures-workers-their.html

 

[RandomWAN]

"Amazon, of course, insists that the machines are there to decrease delivery times and improve workplace safety, working alongside humans as opposed to putting them out of a job."

As if anyone is going to believe that. Major corporations are always looking for a hundred ways to cut operation costs and robots that don't require rest or pay is one of those. They've already been developing drone delivery and are probably salivating at self driving vehicles to be ready for prime time to replace their drivers.

 

[kira setsu]

"Amazon, of course, insists that the machines are there to decrease delivery times and improve workplace safety, working alongside humans as opposed to putting them out of a job."

As if anyone is going to believe that. Major corporations are always looking for a hundred ways to cut operation costs and robots that don't require rest or pay is one of those. They've already been developing drone delivery and are probably salivating at self driving vehicles to be ready for prime time to replace their drivers.

people cant point fingers at amazon because they're the reason its gotten so big, could we all just go out and grab our own crap? sure we could.

Do we do that? no.

so amazon will do whatever it must to keep up with the tidal wave of laziness that lets it exist.

 

[RandomWAN]

people cant point fingers at amazon because they're the reason its gotten so big, could we all just go out and grab our own crap? sure we could.

Do we do that? no.

so amazon will do whatever it must to keep up with the tidal wave of laziness that lets it exist.

I'm not complaining. Menial tasks always get phased out as automation technology develops. I'm just saying they should be honest about it since no one with an IQ above room temperature believes they aren't looking to replace their workers with automation. For now it's a robot that collects bins and other similar tasks, but as soon as they can pick product as deftly as a human, that human is going to be replaced and that's a given that people need to come to grips with. That's why you should always be looking for another rung to climb up at your job and ultimately your career.

Others are already working on automating the complexities of the task.

MIT Develops AI to Make Robots Expert Packers

Tossing a bunch of objects into a box might seem easy, but it's a real challenge for AI.

www.extremetech.com

 

[Neatfeatguy]

people cant point fingers at amazon because they're the reason its gotten so big, could we all just go out and grab our own crap? sure we could.

Do we do that? no.

so amazon will do whatever it must to keep up with the tidal wave of laziness that lets it exist.

I order maybe 3 things off Amazon a year. Their atrocious packing methods generally leave 2/3 of what I order damaged because it is so poorly packaged that I have to request a return and reship several times. Such a waste.

I'd much rather go to a local store and buy what I need, even if it means I have to spend an extra 5-10% more than I would over using Amazon.

Spoiler

This was my last time trying to order something from Amazon that they had a very hard time packaging properly:

Me: I need a HDD for backup purposes....dang, Micro Center doesn't carry an 8TB drive for my needs. I'll order online - oh, I see Amazon sells the same drive as Newegg, but for $30 less. I'll order on Aamzon.

Amazon packing center: Huh...what's this thing? Whatever. It fits in a flimsy plastic envelope. I'll just put it in there and now it's ready to ship!

Me: Yeah! My HDD is here! It was shipped in a flimsy, crappy envelope and the HDD makes a rattling sound. Damn. Request a replacement off Amazon. I ship back bad HDD and replacement is on the way.

Amazon packing center: Huh...what's this thing? Whatever. It fits in a flimsy plastic envelope. I'll just put it in there and now it's ready to ship!

Me: Yeah, the replacement HDD is here! Damnit....again? It was shipped in a flimsy, crappy envelope and the HDD makes a rattling sound. Damn. Request a replacement off Amazon. I ship back bad HDD and replacement is on the way.

Third time is a charm, right? No...no, it's not. Everything repeats again and this time I just put in for a refund from Amazon.

It is now almost 3 weeks since I placed my initial order for the HDD from Amazon. Screw it, order from Newegg and spend a little more. HDD shows up in a box designed to house a HDD and it works like a charm.

 

[Liljonny11]

"Amazon, of course, insists that the machines are there to decrease delivery times and improve workplace safety, working alongside humans as opposed to putting them out of a job."

As if anyone is going to believe that. Major corporations are always looking for a hundred ways to cut operation costs and robots that don't require rest or pay is one of those. They've already been developing drone delivery and are probably salivating at self driving vehicles to be ready for prime time to replace their drivers.

I think most people, including yourself, do not look at these things from an engineering and product perspective. Humans are trained and disciplined to do the right thing, make the right choices, and react when things go wrong. Robots on the other hand need to be programmed, maintained, fixed, and expanded. You now need a team to create the robot, a team to program the robot, a team to maintain and fix the robot, a team to perform physical maintenance on the robot, a team to monitor the robot and manage the all the rest of the robots, and then a team to translate new business logic and systems into usable information that can be programmed.
ALL to replace ONE person's repetitive job. The automated systems do add a ton of jobs including ones that are in the warehouse, however most of the jobs that are added are not the original robots function. In other words, if the only thing you do in a warehouse is repetitive and easy, then you will get replaced. Just like a ton of peoples repetitive jobs were lost when computers and printers were invented....

 

[VaRmeNsI]

"Your jobs are safe (until we are ready to replace them)"

 

[loki1944]

End up like farm equipment and break down constantly; I can see it now.

 

[Angga B]

They work really hard to replace human as workers with artificial programs, electronics and mechanics in their effort to create goods and services with lesser costs. Rendering these many human with no jobs and no disposable income and zero purchasing power.

Do you all catch the contradiction?

Unless they begin to replace human as customers with artificial programs, electronics and mechanics which can consume those goods and services then in all practical matters they are only digging their own grave.

 

[ScottSoapbox]

Robots take the simplest jobs.

If you fear for your job, get more skills than I can pick up an object and place it in a box.

 

[dalpilot]

I don't think this will effect worker's job though they need to upgrade their skills.

The more people get paid above their skills (I.e. no skills/manual labor, etc.) the more likely an employer is to work to automate their jobs. The UAW is working to put their members out of work - between the factories of foreign automakers all being in Right to Work states (so far not a single one of these factories has decided to unionize even with the most "Union" POTUS and gives Foreign Manufacturer's 20-50% (it's hard to know whose cost figures to believe) cost advantage over Union built vehicles. The fact that electric car factories are being built to use less humans and more automation AND use less parts to manufacture - viola - as UAW workers retire or plants get closed watch how UAW membership drops over the next 10 years (that's if the US automakers aren't bankrupt from building cars that ALL lose money (Ford loses $60K (average) for every Mustang Mach E it sells).

 

[RandomWAN]

I think most people, including yourself, do not look at these things from an engineering and product perspective. Humans are trained and disciplined to do the right thing, make the right choices, and react when things go wrong. Robots on the other hand need to be programmed, maintained, fixed, and expanded. You now need a team to create the robot, a team to program the robot, a team to maintain and fix the robot, a team to perform physical maintenance on the robot, a team to monitor the robot and manage the all the rest of the robots, and then a team to translate new business logic and systems into usable information that can be programmed.
ALL to replace ONE person's repetitive job. The automated systems do add a ton of jobs including ones that are in the warehouse, however most of the jobs that are added are not the original robots function. In other words, if the only thing you do in a warehouse is repetitive and easy, then you will get replaced. Just like a ton of peoples repetitive jobs were lost when computers and printers were invented....

I think you're making some unfounded assumptions. I look at everything from an engineering perspective. The training that goes into a job like this is a pretty low bar. You look at a list, collect what's on the list, and pack it up. Virtually every commercial product made has some sort of UPC or QR code on one side of a six sided box. Machines can be easily read this as the systems already exist. They can easily navigate around something as simple as a warehouse with modern sensors and GPS. The handling and manipulation is really the missing component and if you look at the link I shared, MIT is working on training robots to just this by training a bunch of models in simple tasks to combine into a singular model as opposed to trying to train one model into a complex set of instructions.

People over-value and over-estimate the difficulty in doing menial jobs. These workers will be replaced and sooner than you think. They'll never eliminate humans from the warehouse entirely, but they will be reduced to maintenance and supervisory roles, which will require far less people overall (that you have to pay continuously and more than just their salaries). Look at the automotive industry. A large amount of people have been replaced with robots or machines that reduce the number of people necessary to build a car. It's going to happen and not in some far flung future; these type jobs will be greatly reduced within the next 20 years.

They work really hard to replace human as workers with artificial programs, electronics and mechanics in their effort to create goods and services with lesser costs. Rendering these many human with no jobs and no disposable income and zero purchasing power.

Do you all catch the contradiction?

Unless they begin to replace human as customers with artificial programs, electronics and mechanics which can consume those goods and services then in all practical matters they are only digging their own grave.

Except they haven't done that with the number of jobs that have been eliminated with the advances in technology already. What's attacked people's buying power and income isn't technology. People just need to learn to seek to better themselves and grow their career instead of settling into complacency and not growing their skillset. Menial jobs should always be a starter job to help you develop a work history and discipline in your work. It shouldn't be your stopping point.

 

[Peter Farkas]

Robots take the simplest jobs.

If you fear for your job, get more skills than I can pick up an object and place it in a box.

That's how it starts. Though gen AIs are going to take over loads of customer support and analyst jobs as well even in the next 5 years. It is not just the low skilled jobs that are at risk. Also, we are talking about early, 1st and 2nd gen robots, AI/ML algorythms. Think of your kids, what skills should they pick up to be safe from machines for the next 30-60 years?

 

[Dimitrios]

Terminator - "Come with me if you want a raise."

 

[Michiel]

"Amazon, of course, insists that the machines are there to decrease delivery times and improve workplace safety, working alongside humans as opposed to putting them out of a job."

As if anyone is going to believe that. Major corporations are always looking for a hundred ways to cut operation costs and robots that don't require rest or pay is one of those. They've already been developing drone delivery and are probably salivating at self driving vehicles to be ready for prime time to replace their drivers.

And that's a good thing.

 

[Michiel]

... Think of your kids, what skills should they pick up to be safe from machines for the next 30-60 years?

Guerilla warfighting?

 

[Michiel]

I think you're making some unfounded assumptions. I look at everything from an engineering perspective. The training that goes into a job like this is a pretty low bar. You look at a list, collect what's on the list, and pack it up. Virtually every commercial product made has some sort of UPC or QR code on one side of a six sided box. Machines can be easily read this as the systems already exist. They can easily navigate around something as simple as a warehouse with modern sensors and GPS. The handling and manipulation is really the missing component and if you look at the link I shared, MIT is working on training robots to just this by training a bunch of models in simple tasks to combine into a singular model as opposed to trying to train one model into a complex set of instructions.

People over-value and over-estimate the difficulty in doing menial jobs. These workers will be replaced and sooner than you think. They'll never eliminate humans from the warehouse entirely, but they will be reduced to maintenance and supervisory roles, which will require far less people overall (that you have to pay continuously and more than just their salaries). Look at the automotive industry. A large amount of people have been replaced with robots or machines that reduce the number of people necessary to build a car. It's going to happen and not in some far flung future; these type jobs will be greatly reduced within the next 20 years.




Except they haven't done that with the number of jobs that have been eliminated with the advances in technology already. What's attacked people's buying power and income isn't technology. People just need to learn to seek to better themselves and grow their career instead of settling into complacency and not growing their skillset. Menial jobs should always be a starter job to help you develop a work history and discipline in your work. It shouldn't be your stopping point.

For a certain group of people, they simply don't have the mental power to really do anything beyond "menial jobs". That's not a judgement, that just the way it is.

 

[RandomWAN]

And that's a good thing.

Where did I say it's a bad thing?

For a certain group of people, they simply don't have the mental power to really do anything beyond "menial jobs". That's not a judgement, that just the way it is.

I'm all for bringing back natural selection. You either figure out a way to be better or you get selected out by nature.

 

[ScottSoapbox]

That's how it starts. Though gen AIs are going to take over loads of customer support and analyst jobs as well even in the next 5 years. It is not just the low skilled jobs that are at risk. Also, we are talking about early, 1st and 2nd gen robots, AI/ML algorythms. Think of your kids, what skills should they pick up to be safe from machines for the next 30-60 years?

Again, those are the lowest skilled "white collar" jobs.

Customer support in most cases is a person listening and then reading the appropriate prompt back to the other person. Those are 4th grade skills.

Many analyst jobs are entering numbers into a spreadsheet they only somewhat understand and making reports for a manager (that either doesn't understand the spreadsheet or doesn't have the time to run it himself). Those are glorified data entry skills.

Entrepreneurship is the best skill to be safe from machines.

(And you already chose the wrong job if 60 years of work is required to retire.)

 

[Peter Farkas]

Again, those are the lowest skilled "white collar" jobs.

Customer support in most cases is a person listening and then reading the appropriate prompt back to the other person. Those are 4th grade skills.

Many analyst jobs are entering numbers into a spreadsheet they only somewhat understand and making reports for a manager (that either doesn't understand the spreadsheet or doesn't have the time to run it himself). Those are glorified data entry skills.

Entrepreneurship is the best skill to be safe from machines.

(And you already chose the wrong job if 60 years of work is required to retire.)

So, you see, you went from talking about "putting things into a box" to "low level white collar jobs". Then again, these are just early generations of AI and ML. If you keep kicking down the stone the same path you'll understand it is not just these jobs but, with time (probably sooner than we think), highly skilled jobs will be at risk, moreover, machine will eventually do the job better than a human (think of AIs assessing medical scans today and already have a higher rate of identifying diseases at a much earlier stage).

I agree on entrepreneurship being a very very valuable skill for now, however, that won't make you safe from machines. You sounded a bit like someone who just came out of a Ted Talk on Entrepreneurship, but the reality is, later generations of machines will do even that better than you will ever do.