Australia Boosts its Technological Hub with $23 billion Robotics Centre

Australia has boosted its technological hub with a $23 billion Robotics Centre. The new purpose-built Robotics Innovation Centre will be located at Pullenvale, in Brisbane. The facility will be used to further pursue research that is already underway with autonomous robotics systems to interact safely and seamlessly with humans.

Adrian Turner, Chief Executive at Data61 said the new centre is a national asset that will provide a unique collaborative opportunity between industry, government and academia. Turner said, "robotics and autonomous systems technologies, underpinned by machine learning and artificial intelligence, will unlock new value in all manner of sectors including manufacturing, agriculture, healthcare and mining."

World-class facilities like the Robotics Innovation Centre, Turner says will ensure Australia is well placed to benefit from Industry 4.0. He said it will help protect and accelerate the nation's ongoing economic success. "The facility will feature the largest motion capture system in the Southern Hemisphere to be used to validate data captured by robotics systems in the field."

Moreover, a swimming pool is being planned for testing aquatic robots, numerous unmanned aerial and ground vehicles, legged robots, high-accuracy robot manipulators as well as sensors and telemetry systems.

Experts say the robotics industry has attracted professionals and researchers alike to contribute and boost the sector. Artificial intelligence is expected to increase from $500 million in 2018 to $2.41 billion by 2023.