The inaugural Aviation & Robotics Summit in Pittsburgh only occurred over the span of three days, but event organizers are optimistic its impact will add to a growing list of events that are successfully showcasing the region's strengths to outside interests.
Nearly 300 people attended the kickoff event on April 18 in the Strip District, which featured an address from Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro as well as a speech from North Side-based Astrobotic Technology Inc. CEO John Thornton, the latter of whom is expected to oversee America's return to the moon this summer with his company's Peregrine Lunar Lander.
"I believe that the future success of our commonwealth depends on what happens in rooms like this. It depends on the hard work you put in and the growth that you're able to cultivate with the people who work with you and alongside you every day to make this a place of innovation," Shapiro said during the speech. "I believe in you, and I believe in the future of this region. You have put Pittsburgh on the map as a leader in robotics and innovation."
Joel Reed, president of the nonprofit Pittsburgh Robotics Network, which organized the event with support from startup investment firm Innovation Works Inc.'s Robotics Factory, estimated about 80-100 people participated in the multiday workshops on April 19 and 20 following the event kickoff.
About half of those in attendance came from the local robotics community, Reed said, but the other half was comprised of aviation industry experts, which consisted mostly of people who helm outside of Pittsburgh and even the United States. Reed said dignitaries from Singapore, the U.K., Germany and other countries made up the attendance roster during the summit.
"The event overwhelmingly exceeded our expectations," Reed said. "The intent early on was to match up our robotics innovators with industry representatives who could more specifically explain the problems that they were facing in their operations, the needs and the requirements that were associated with those stated problems, so we can develop solutions that actually solve the problems at the lowest cost with the relatively easiest ability to deploy them in terms of cost, timing and viability."
The design of the summit allowed for nuanced challenges impacting the aviation industry to be paired with possible solutions that utilize robotics, Reed said. Hurdles impacting baggage handling, aircraft servicing, workforce support and general passenger experiences could all be met with existing robotics technologies, Reed said.
"These are the kinds of problems that exist in the overall system, and we just really went through all the different types of technologies and solutions that are out there and how to solve them," Reed said. "Now, the hope is that these aviation leaders are going to go back, they have new relationships within our community and there should be follow-up. And then there's a great opportunity for even new companies to be formed out of this. So on the robotics side, there were entrepreneurs who are either working on current ideas or might be looking for their next venture."
Funding for the event came from the region's $62.7 million Build Back Better Regional Challenge grant, which it won last fall as part of a federally funded competition aimed at spurring and funding innovation throughout the country.
Reed said he's looking forward to taking the successful elements from this event to reuse them as part of another industry-tailored summit that ties to robotics later this fall, though he declined to disclose further specifics on what that industry might be. He also said it's likely another aviation-themed robotics event will take place again next year as a result of this year's offering.
"Now we're going to see a repeat event [next year] in a particular industry, and if you look at the robotics space, our 100-plus commercial organizations cover at least 12 different core industries," Reed said. "We're going to move on to the next industry in the fall and do the very same format for a new industry sector."
