In this episode, we explore the future of emotional intelligence and how AI can help machines better understand human behavior, emotion, and social cues.

Our guest, Michel Valstar, Co-Founder, Chief Evangelist and Scientific Officer (CESO) at BLUESKEYE AI, shares insights into facial analysis, voice behavior, human-robot interaction, and the technology behind machines that can interpret human signals in real time.

🎙️ Guest: Michel Valstar Founder, Chief Evangelist and Scientific Officer (CESO) at BLUESKEYE AI

🎙️ Host: Jesica Chavez

🎙️ Co-host: Andy Diepen

🔍 What you'll hear:

• How facial expressions and voice reveal social, emotional, and biophysical signals

• Why real-time, edge-based AI matters for privacy and human-robot interaction

• How emotional intelligence can support healthcare, elderly care, and automotive applications

• The challenges of AI bias and working with sensitive human data

• What the next generation of socially intelligent robots could look like

As robots move into more human-centered environments, understanding people becomes a critical part of intelligent machine behavior. This conversation explores how emotional intelligence is evolving from a human capability into an emerging layer of machine intelligence.

More at: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.robo-success.com⁠⁠⁠⁠

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In this episode, we explore a critical question for the future of human-robot interaction: What happens when robots become part of our emotional and social lives?

Our guest, Sara Filipcic, Founder & Executive Director, Institute for Humane Robotics, shares insights into psychosocial safety, the emerging layer of robotics safety focused on how robots can influence human relationships, emotional well-being, and development.

🎙️ Guest: Sara Filipcic
🎙️ Host: Jesica Chavez
🎙️ Co-host: Andy Diepen

🔍 What you'll hear:

• Why physical safety standards may not be enough as robots become more integrated into daily life
• How over-attachment, anthropomorphism, and emotional dependency could shape human-robot relationships
• Why children and vulnerable populations require greater consideration when designing social and caregiving robots
• How cultural differences influence the way people perceive and interact with robots
• How the Institute for Human Robotics is working with IEEE to develop research, design guidelines, and standards for psychosocial safety

As robots move from controlled environments into homes, schools, healthcare, and caregiving, safety needs to account for more than physical harm. The challenge now is understanding how these systems may shape human behavior, relationships, and development over time.

Sara and the Institute for Human Robotics are working to bring researchers, engineers, universities, and industry leaders into that conversation before these systems become deeply embedded in everyday life.

More at: ⁠⁠www.robo-success.com⁠

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In this episode, we explore how social robotics and AI are creating new opportunities for human-facing work, from education and tutoring to customer service and companionship.

Our guest, Andrew Kiguel, CEO and Chairman of Realbotix, shares his journey from investment banking and founding Hut 8 to building human-centered robots designed to interact naturally with people. He also discusses the market opportunity for social robotics, the role of AI in education, and why safety and practical design matter as humanoid robots move into real-world environments.

🎙️ Guest: Andrew Kiguel, CEO and Chairman of Realbotix

🎙️ Host: Jesica Chavez

🎙️ Co-host: Andy Diepen

🔍 What you'll hear:

• Why social companion robots could open new markets beyond traditional industrial automation.

• How Realbotix is developing AI-powered educational robots to support students and teachers.

• Why curriculum-based, closed-loop AI systems matter for safety, accuracy, and responsible educational deployment.

• How facial expressions, eye-gaze tracking, and emotional cues can make human-robot interactions more natural.

• Why stationary, human-facing robot designs may offer practical advantages in safety, runtime, and deployment.

From personalized learning to human-centered service, the next chapter of robotics may depend on more than mechanical capability. It may depend on how effectively robots communicate, build trust, and fit into the environments where people live and work.

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In this episode, we explore one of the biggest remaining challenges in humanoid robotics: dexterity.

Our guest, Jay Li, CEO and Founder of Proception, shares insights into why advanced robotic hands still struggle to match human dexterity, the critical role of tactile sensing, and how better hardware and data could unlock more capable general-purpose robots.

🎙️ Guest: Jay Li, CEO & Founder of Proception

🎙️ Host: Jesica Chavez

🎙️ Co-host: Andy Diepen

🔍 What you'll hear:

• Why humanoid robots still fall short of human-level dexterity

• Why tactile sensing may be one of robotics' biggest bottlenecks

• How neural networks and data are changing the approach to robotic manipulation

• How Proception combines robotic hardware with high-quality data collection

• Why better dexterity could expand the role of robots across industries

The next generation of robots won't just need better movement. They will need to sense, adapt, and interact with the physical world with far greater precision. Dexterity may be one of the capabilities that determines how useful general-purpose robots can ultimately become.

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In this episode, we explore how AI and humanoid robotics are changing the physical world — and why the biggest shift may be in leadership, culture, and how organizations prepare for what comes next.

Our guest, Sylvia Stocker, CEO of Arabesque, shares insights on AI leadership, physical AI, robotics deployment, and what it takes for companies to move from experimentation to real-world adoption.

🎙️ Guest: Sylvia Stocker, CEO of Arabesque

🎙️ Host: Jesica Chavez

🎙️ Co-host: Andy Diepen

🔍 What you'll hear:

• Why AI and humanoid robotics require a new approach to leadership

• How physical AI is expanding what robots can do in real-world environments

• Why robotics deployments fail without business and stakeholder alignment

• How companies can prepare employees for automation before deployment

• What robotics founders need beyond a strong product to become truly market-ready

The future of robotics isn't only about what technology can do. It's about whether organizations are ready to adopt it, support it, and build around it.

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In this episode, we explore what it actually takes to build and deploy robotics companies in Mexico—and what the region could become in the global robotics supply chain.

Our guest, Aldo Luevano, Chairman and Co-Founder of Roomie IT, shares his perspective on robotics, AI, entrepreneurship, and the realities of building deep tech in Latin America.

🎙️ Guest: Aldo Luevano

🎙️ Host: Jesica Chavez

🎙️ Co-host: Andy Diepen

🔍 What you'll hear:

• Why Roomie moved from consumer robotics to enterprise AI—and what the pivot revealed about the robotics market

• The challenge of proving ROI for humanoid robots, particularly in markets where labor costs remain relatively low

• Why compliance, security, and supply-chain considerations could create new opportunities for North American robotics

• How Mexico could become a strategic robotics manufacturing and hardware hub for the U.S. market

• Why components like actuators and servo motors may represent a more practical entry point into robotics than building an entire robot

The conversation also explores the realities of funding deep tech in Latin America, the difference between building hardware and software, and why customer feedback is critical when developing robotics products. For Aldo, building globally relevant technology requires more than technical innovation—it requires understanding where the market has a problem worth solving.

🔗 More at: www.robo-success.com/

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In this episode, we explore what it takes to build the next generation of robotics engineers and why hands-on hardware experience remains critical in an increasingly AI-driven industry.

Our guest, Joseph Casebeer, Founder and CEO of Takamori Robot, shares insights about his journey into robotics, the development of the Hero educational robotics kit, and why understanding embedded systems and hardware fundamentals will remain essential as AI transforms engineering.

Guest: Joseph Casebeer

Host: Jesica Chavez
Co-host: Andy Diepen

Learn more about Takamori Robot: https://www.takamorirobot.com/

🔍 What you'll hear:

• How Joseph's early experience with animatronics sparked his path into robotics.
• Why Hero uses a Raspberry Pi Pico and microcontroller-based design to teach real robotics fundamentals.
• The transition from graphical programming to writing raw code and understanding how hardware actually works.
• Why personal projects and hands-on experience can be more valuable than grades alone when building an engineering career.
• Why AI can accelerate coding, but engineers still need deep technical knowledge to debug, optimize, and solve hardware-specific problems.

Building a robotics project is more than an exercise in learning to code. It is an opportunity to understand how software, electronics, actuators, and physical systems interact—and how those systems fail. As AI makes software development increasingly accessible, the engineers who understand what is happening underneath the code will remain critical to building reliable robots.

More at: www.robo-success.com

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In this episode, we explore one of the biggest hidden challenges in robotics and hardware innovation: manufacturing and sourcing. While much of the industry focuses on breakthrough technologies and AI capabilities, many companies lose momentum long before they ever ship a product because of sourcing delays and production bottlenecks.

Our guest, Mitesh Shetty, Founder of Raprod, shares his experience working across engineering, manufacturing, and product development and explains why the future of robotics depends on building better infrastructure between hardware teams and manufacturers.

Host: Jesica Chavez

Co-host: Andy Diepen

🔍 What you'll hear:

• Why sourcing and manufacturing can become the biggest bottleneck for robotics startups

• The unique challenges of producing low-volume, high-precision technologies like robotics and physical AI systems

• Why engineering and sourcing strategies should happen in parallel rather than sequentially

• How Raprod is creating a more transparent and efficient manufacturing marketplace for hardware teams

• Why lowering the barriers to manufacturing could accelerate the future of robotics innovation

As robotics companies race to commercialize new technologies, building the robot is only part of the challenge. This episode explores why manufacturing infrastructure, supplier networks, and faster sourcing processes may be some of the most important enablers of the next generation of robotics and physical AI companies.

More at: ⁠www.robo-success.com⁠

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In this episode, we explore the evolving state of the humanoid robotics industry and what it will take to move from impressive demonstrations to meaningful deployment at scale.

Our hosts share key insights from the Humanoid Summit in Tokyo, discussing how the industry's focus is shifting beyond hardware breakthroughs toward safety, compliance, workforce adoption, and measurable business outcomes.

Host: Jesica Chavez

Co-host: Andy Diepen

🔍 What you'll hear:

• Why the conversation around humanoid robots is moving from hype to implementation

• The challenges companies face when transitioning from pilots to real-world deployments

• How ROI, efficiency, and operational impact are becoming the new success metrics

• Why customer success, education, and workforce adoption are critical for robotics companies

• How the industry can build trust by positioning robots as tools that improve working conditions, not replace people

As humanoid robotics advances, the challenge is no longer just building the technology, it's deploying it successfully. This episode explores the role of adoption, education, and real-world implementation in shaping the future of robotics.

More at: www.robo-success.com

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In this episode, we explore the critical transition from building a working prototype to deploying a stable, scalable hardware product in production environments.

Our guest, Chioma Aso, Founder and Principal Consultant at Polymavericks Engineering, shares insights about navigating the inherent friction of physical AI, mitigating supply chain vulnerabilities, and building organizational frameworks that support long-term product lifecycles.

Guest: Chioma Aso

Host: Jesica Chavez Co-host: Andy Diepen

Learn more about Polymavericks Engineering: https://polymatvericks.com/

🔍 What you'll hear:

• Why a successful prototype is a false indicator of manufacturing repeatability.

• The Polymavericks Framework: A five-pillar approach to systemic hardware auditing.

• Sim-to-Real gaps: Accounting for environmental chaos, friction, and edge cases. • Strategic supply chain engineering: Addressing tolerance stack-ups and dual-sourcing.

• Shifting from garage-scale R&D to enterprise-grade operational models.

Building a hardware prototype proves that a concept is possible. Building a manufacturing and deployment strategy proves you have a business. For deep tech founders and robotics executives, scaling isn't a post-R&D phase—it is a core architectural design choice made on day one.

More at: ⁠www.robo-success.com⁠

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