Philadelphia-based Fort Robotics announced the acquisition of Mapless AI, a Boston and Pittsburgh-based provider of vehicle teleoperation and autonomy supervision. The company expects the development to expand its Trust Platform by adding remote human-in-the-loop teleoperation and onboard active safety.
"Acquiring Mapless AI allows Fort to deliver the proactive safety frameworks our customers are asking for," Fort Robotics CEO Samuel Reeves said. "We are building the foundational trust system to ensure that, as robots become more autonomous, safety is an accelerator rather than a bottleneck."
Two New Solutions
- Human-in-the-Loop from Anywhere (Remote Teleoperation): Allows for remote teleoperation across long distances, enabling an off-site specialist to safely monitor and operate vehicles or machine systems from anywhere
- Onboard Active Safety (Environmental Sensing): Onboard perception technology enables machines to actively detect, anticipate and respond to their environments in real time, allowing autonomous vehicles to execute smart, real-time planning and contingency maneuvers
Mapless AI's Automotive and Deep-Tech Expertise
The Mapless AI team, led by founders Philipp Robbel and Jeffrey Kane Johnson, draws on deep roots in automotive leadership, including Bosch, Apple, Uber, Aptiv and nuTonomy. The acquisition positions Fort to accelerate its expansion into complex real-world environments, including construction, logistics, defense and last-mile delivery.
"The reality is that for robots to work closely with humans and valuable infrastructure, they must be smart enough to understand and anticipate risk," Robbel said. "Joining the Fort family allows us to bring our safety-first vision to a much larger platform, accelerating the type of products that will define the next decade of industrial automation and physical AI."
