This episode of the Sunny Ray Show features Dr. Asad Tirmizi, founder and CEO of Trener Robotics, a company building pre-trained AI skill models for industrial robots. Asad traces his path through robotics research, from a master's in Sweden and a PhD in Italy to a postdoc in Belgium, then Silicon Valley roles at Vicarious (acquired by Google) and ByteDance. He explains why there is no single ChatGPT moment for robotics, since the hardware base historically has been too small for AI breakthroughs to matter at scale. Instead, Trener Robotics focuses on giving existing robotic arms the intelligence to declare tasks in plain language rather than hand programming every motion. Asad discusses why robotic arms, not humanoids, are the near term opportunity, how partnerships with OEMs and integrators drive scale, and what a factory could look like in five years under pervasive robot intelligence. He closes with candid advice for deep tech founders on timing the leap from research to startup, emphasizing customer willingness to pay as the real test of usefulness.
Dr. Asad Tirmizi explains how Trener Robotics is teaching existing industrial robot arms real world intelligence, not just building humanoids.
Can you give a one line elevator pitch on what Trener Robotics does?
We create pre-trained AI skill models for robots. Industrial robots today have to be programmed for every task in manufacturing and services. We provide a pre-trained skill model that gives the robot the ability to know what it is doing, how it is done, and what to do if something goes wrong.
Did the ChatGPT moment change things for you and open doors for applying similar tech to robotics?
There is no ChatGPT moment for robotics and there never will be, because even a groundbreaking technology needs enough deployed robots to matter. What ChatGPT did show the world is that if the prize is big enough, people will invest in compute, data, and storage. But robotics architecture combining vision, language, haptics, and fast control actions is far more complex than an LLM.
Are you working with humanoid robots given all the excitement around them?
Robots for us include arms, mobile bases, and humanoids, but we choose to deploy where there is real demand and a real user base. All our deployments and OEM partnerships today are with robotic arm manufacturers. As humanoids mature, the same models can work on them too, but we haven't done that work yet.
You worked at ByteDance on robotics and haptics. Can you talk about that?
ByteDance is the parent of TikTok, and once you have a superstar product like that, the natural instinct is to expand into other promising areas. They had a very active haptics and robotics program, partly because their company Pico makes VR headsets that play a role in robot training. I was honored to be part of that program and remain on good terms with them.
Why is upgrading the millions of existing robot arms a bigger opportunity than building new humanoids?
Humanoids are promising but have a long way to go before safely working alongside humans, facing compliance, privacy, and safety challenges. Intelligence and embodiment are separate things. You can have the most intelligent robotic arm for machining without needing a humanoid. We are embodiment agnostic and believe many different embodiments will exist over the next 20 years.
What does the name Trener mean, and why the rebrand alongside your $32 million Series A?
My co-founder is of Norwegian origin, and in Norwegian trener means to coach or train somebody who trains you. It fit what we do, so it was time our name reflected our larger ambitions. The Series A funding will help us grow our footprint, develop the technology further, and train more skills.
What advice would you give deep tech founders on when to make the leap from research to starting a company?
Timing the leap is a personal calling tied to your pain tolerance, since once you take the plunge the clock is ticking on funds and energy. In research, direction is often set by what you or your professor believes is right, which can lead to solutions that don't move the needle. The best measure of usefulness is whether someone is willing to pay for it.
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