– After 16 years at world-leading eye-tracking company Tobii, VP of Sales Anne Jansen now joins Furhat Robotics as the new Head of Commercial to further position Furhat in the growing social robotics industry.

Stockholm-based robotics startup recruits experienced Tobii Pro VP of Sales

Since the launch of their latest robot, Stockholm based company Furhat Robotics has been ramping up production of their robots together with Swedish manufacturers. In addition to 5 recent recruits to the team this year, the company has now added in the acknowledged commercial leader Anne Jansen to further accelerate sales and market share within both the corporate and academic sector.

Anne Jansen started out as employee number 15 at Tobii. Today, the company has expanded to over 1,000 employees across four continents. Anne has led teams focusing on sales within EMEA academic and commercial research markets, as well as global business operations.

“I have fond memories of those early days at Tobii, when the company was still in its start up phase. Engaging with a variety of customers and partners, learning about their inspiring research applications, and capturing their needs into further portfolio development opportunities to grow Tobii’s market share.”

Joining Furhat, Anne comes with a unique experience and track record in bringing an explorative tech startup from the early days to a fully-fledged tech giant. Her particular focus on the research and innovation markets is well suited with the target audiences for Furhat Robotics.

“I love Furhat’s promise of making social robots a reality. To enable social robots as our next major user interface, we need to connect with researchers and innovators to further explore and develop the different aspects and applications that will have a significant impact on society and our everyday lives.” 

“Trends show an increasing usage of voice devices, and huge advancements are made in conversational AI. The Furhat platform combines advanced conversational AI with multisensory and immersive interactions to create amazing experiences, leading the way for higher acceptance and adoption of social robots.”

Furhat Robotics CEO Samer Al Moubayed explains what this means for the company’s global position and strategy for the coming years. 

“Having Anne Jansen, with her wealth of commercial and leadership experience, join Furhat is an incredible win for our company, and a key milestone in our journey to bring social robots to the market” says Samer Al Moubayed. 

“Social robots is a technology in its early exciting years. These are the days of working with explorers, scientists, researchers, and innovators, who are imagining the future of what social robots will do in the coming years. Anne has a very unique and deep understanding of these users, she has a rare experience in bringing high-end technology devices from very early days, to the mainstream. She understands the challenges of how to scale a sales organisation in a startup like Furhat. 

Samer concludes “I am very happy to see Anne join our management team. This is evidence of the leadership position that Furhat has accomplished to be able to attract a caliber such as Anne’s, and I look forward to the next years in building the industry together with her.”