Furhat Robotics, the company behind the world’s most advanced social robot, Furhat, today announces the acquisition of the business assets of Colorado-based social robotics startup Misty Robotics, creators of the highly sophisticated social robot, Misty. The acquisition establishes an American base of operations for Furhat Robotics, and will enable further expansion and development of the next-generation of social robots utilizing both the Furhat and Misty robots and teams.
“Misty is an incredibly well designed and engineered robot that one falls in love with at first sight. Very likable and social, yet highly sophisticated in terms of hardware and software. There are more than 1000 Mistys out in the world, and the range of applications users are building with Misty is very inspirational. We have admired the work of the Misty Robotics team over the past years and their focus on developers. To be joining forces is an exciting moment for everyone at Furhat, and I believe for the whole social robotics industry” says CEO and Co-founder of Furhat Robotics, Samer Al Moubayed. “We know that the next few years will be pivotal for our dream to bring social robots closer to people’s lives. This rare event in joining forces of two of the leading social robotics companies in the world is going to give us much stronger capabilities to move faster towards that dream.”
Misty Robotics, founded in 2017 by Ian Bernstein – the Co-Founder of consumer robotics company, Sphero (that famously worked with the Walt Disney company on the Sphero Starwars BB-8 robot) – is the company behind the Misty robot. They built Misty as an advanced platform to provide researchers and high-end developers with all the tools required to build and test prototypes of social robot applications. By tailoring and modifying its functionality through third-party APIs, Misty users can build apps and add personalized features, such as a temperature screening assistant (an efficient approach to COVID-19 workplace screening), health companions, and as tools for supporting children with autism.
“We couldn’t have found a better company to join forces with than Furhat Robotics,” says Misty Robotics Founder, Ian Bernstein. “We both share the vision of robots in all of our lives, robots helping with not only the dull, difficult, and dangerous tasks but ones that become our companions and make technology more accessible. Samer and the entire team at Furhat are incredibly talented and I’m confident that together we will be able to greatly accelerate the field of social robotics based on the combined work of both teams.”
Furhat Robotics will continue to support the Misty Robotics brand, and help to develop and expand the product range, as well as gradually integrate Furhat and Misty technical features and SDK to bring the power of both platforms to all users. Misty Robotics Founder Ian Bernstein and CEO Tim Enwall will join Furhat’s advisory board, and other senior team members from Boulder Colorado will join the Furhat management team. Furhat Robotics CEO, Samer Al Moubayed, will share his time between Furhat’s Stockholm headquarters and the new office in Boulder, Colorado.
