FedEx Announces That It Will Use AI Robots To Pack Trucks

FedEx and robotics firm Dexterity AI announced a partnership recently to utilize autonomous robots to optimize the packing of FexEx trucks.

The partnership aims to improve the efficiency and speed of FedEx’s trailer loading processes using the DexR system, a two-armed robot that can pick and pack boxes simultaneously.

The robots use Dexterity’s AI platform to handle the complexities of truck loading, optimizing millions of loading options in a split second.

Dexterity AI and @FedEx unveil first-of-its-kind robotics trailer loading technology.
Learn more: https://t.co/PBReeVNYf5 pic.twitter.com/472zs73vQB

— Dexterity Robotics (@DexterityRobots) September 26, 2023

The robots have a unique sense of touch that allows them to gently nudge boxes together to create tightly packed walls.

Dexterity AI was founded by a group of friends who met at Stanford University’s Robotics Lab and have since patented many of its underlying technologies.

The company has received nearly $200 million in A and B series funding.

The DexR was unveiled at a joint event in San Francisco recently, and FedEx plans to extensively test it in several loading centers to refine how it works.

The use of AI in the world of robotics is very new with much of the focus on autonomous vehicles, farm equipment, and delivery drones.

However, the dexterity of robotic arms with abilities to react to unexpected events using AI offers a new world of automated handling of delicate items.

FedEx delivers over 6 million packages every day and the logistics necessary to move packages from truck to truck without damage is currently completely manual.

DexR offers the ability to pack trucks more efficiently which will mean more packages per truck and therefore less gas, and less wear and tear on the FedEx trucks.