17 June 2026 | News
Image Courtesy: Public Domain
The 2026 “Award for Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Robotics & Automation” (IERA) goes to Swiss deep-tech company Verity for its fully autonomous indoor drone system. The aerial robots help in the logistics and retail sector, continuously keeping track of inventory without GPS or human intervention. The drones autonomously navigate aisles and scan barcodes before returning to charging stations. Across deployed fleets, a centralized cloud-based platform ensures continuous learning and optimization of performance.
Each drone is equipped with real-time autonomy functions on board, such as perception, motion planning, and obstacle avoidance, to ensure real-time decisions. When they fly through aisles, they capture barcode data, which are integrated directly into warehouse management systems. Discrepancies are identified and reported. By locating lost items, such as misplaced fully loaded pallets, the drone system saves companies a significant amount of money that would previously have had to be written off. The drones work autonomously for months at a time, requiring two to three battery replacements per year.
Continuous learning from each flight
Across warehouses, the drones capture about 500,000 images per day. This continuous stream of real-world data is used to train and refine the technology. Verity’s systems have been deployed in about 200 warehouses worldwide.
“With its aerial robotics technology, Verity has managed to develop a mature product that has been successfully launched to support its customers,” said Jim Ostrowski, IERA Award’s Committee Chair. “The jury was impressed by Verity's significant patent portfolio, their robust business plan, and their pioneering role in bringing innovative technology to market.”
“It is a great honor to be recognized by the leading organizations in the robotics industry,” said Markus Hehn, Co-founder and Chief Technology Officer of Verity. “We thank the jury for recognizing the efforts of our team and awarding us the prestigious IERA Award 2026.”
