Monthly Greater Silicon Valley Robotics & Automation Luncheon

Running a robotics startup means constantly dealing with hardware iterations, code, investors, and endless dashboards. This weekend, it's time to step back from the machinery for a picnic / potluck. We are gathering a small, curated group of deep-tech executives for a Saturday at Daniel Theobald's Rancho San Gregorio. This is a rare chance to shift your environment, reset your mental bandwidth, and connect with peers who actually understand the unique physical, technical, and financial hurdles of hardware. No pitches. No agendas. Just a space for the unstructured breakthroughs that only happen when you give your brain a break from the lab. The Details: Where: Rancho San Gregorio (About an hour south of San Francisco) Perks: Unwind with sweeping coastal views, great food, and a chance to meet the ranch goats. Stay the Night: You are welcome to camp out under the stars in a tent, your car, or wherever you feel comfortable. How to Join:Space is strictly capped to keep the conversation intimate and meaningful. If you can make it, please RSVP as soon as possible (Note: Bring layers—the coastal California weather can change quickly!) Best, Daniel Theobald Can't make it? Click below to access our event page by Category Intelligent Machine Guild Programs Material Handling Industry Conference & Summit Founder Programs Industry Partners Volunteer Thank you to our Sponsors: MHI (Material Handling Industry)MHI is the nation's largest material handling, logistics, and supply chain association. It delivers education, networking, and marketplace opportunities for industry leaders. Through premier events like ProMat and MODEX, MHI connects manufacturing and supply chain innovators. It drives the adoption of cutting-edge technologies that power global commerce and automated fulfillment. IMG (Intelligent Machine Guild)IMG operates at the forefront of automation, robotics, and intelligent systems engineering. The group accelerates commercialization by bridging the gap between advanced research and market-ready industrial hardware. IMG supports deep-tech ventures with technical expertise, strategic guidance, and ecosystem development. Their focus ensures complex physical systems can scale effectively in real-world environments. Founders GuildFounders Guild is a premier, invitation-only network built by founders, for founders. It provides deep-tech executives with a trusted community to share hard-won operational insights. The guild facilitates peer-to-peer mentorship, investor relations, and scaling strategies tailored specifically to physical technology. Members collaborate to navigate the unique capital expenditure and long development cycles of hardware. Our catalog of social and professional networking events spans across the following areas.: 1. Company Types Industrial robot manufacturers Humanoid robot companies Autonomous vehicle companies Drone companies Surgical robotics companies Agricultural robotics companies Warehouse automation companies Defense robotics companies Robotics software/platform companies Robotics component suppliers 2. Job Functions Mechanical Engineer Electrical Engineer Robotics Software Engineer AI/ML Engineer Controls Engineer Systems Engineer Product Manager Manufacturing Engineer Field Application Engineer Sales Engineer 3. Organizational Roles Founder CEO CTO VP Engineering Engineering Manager Technical Lead Principal Engineer Senior Engineer Staff Engineer Intern 4. Robot Types Industrial arms Humanoid robots Mobile robots (AMRs) AGVs (Automated Guided Vehicles) Drones/UAVs Surgical robots Service robots Agricultural robots Underwater robots Space robots 5. Technology Stack Layers Sensors Actuators Embedded systems Real-time control Localization Planning Perception Simulation Fleet management Human-robot interaction 6. Industry Verticals Manufacturing Logistics Healthcare Agriculture Defense Construction Mining Energy Retail Consumer/Home 7. Technical Specializations Computer Vision Reinforcement Learning Motion Planning Controls Theory SLAM Multi-Agent Systems Manipulation Navigation Safety Engineering Human-Robot Interaction 8. Funding & Business Stages Research lab University spinout Pre-seed startup Seed startup Series A company Growth-stage startup Public robotics company Corporate robotics division Government-funded program Nonprofit/Open-source organization 9. Customer Segments Factories Warehouses Hospitals Farms Military organizations Construction firms Energy companies Municipal governments Small businesses Consumers 10. Robotics Career Tracks Research Scientist Applied Scientist Robotics Engineer Controls Engineer Embedded Engineer Simulation Engineer Product Manager Solutions Architect Founder/Entrepreneur Venture Capital Investor 11. Geography United States Canada Germany France United Kingdom China Japan South Korea Israel Singapore 12. Autonomy Level Fully teleoperated Shared autonomy Assisted operation Rule-based automation Semi-autonomous Autonomous in structured environments Autonomous in dynamic environments Multi-robot coordinated autonomy Self-improving autonomy General-purpose autonomy 13. Hardware Complexity Single actuator system Fixed automation Mobile platform Robotic arm Multi-arm system Legged robot Aerial robot Multi-modal robot Humanoid robot Swarm robotics platform 14. Software Maturity Research code Prototype stack Internal deployment Pilot deployment Beta product Commercial v1 Multi-customer platform Enterprise-grade platform Global-scale platform Safety-certified platform 15. Revenue Model Hardware sales Hardware leasing Robotics-as-a-Service (RaaS) Software licensing SaaS platform Maintenance contracts Usage-based pricing Integration services Data monetization Outcome-based pricing 16. AI Capability Classical automation Computer vision Predictive analytics Task planning Reinforcement learning Foundation-model-assisted control Embodied AI Multi-agent AI Self-learning systems Generalist robot intelligence 17. Safety Criticality Hobby robo