PitchBook, the leading resource for global capital markets, released its Q3 2022 “Supply Chain Technology Report” last Friday. The report highlights VC trends in the supply chain space, and Phantom Auto was one of three companies spotlighted:
“Phantom Auto’s remote operation platform allows operators to monitor, guide, and operate forklifts from an office anywhere in the world. The path toward autonomous systems….is bound to be fraught with fits and starts. For now, it seems having a human in the loop seems to be the best way forward.”
As the premier data provider for the private and public equity markets, PitchBook provides comprehensive, data-backed analysis, and trends on influential companies in a wide range of industries. PitchBook lays out the inherent challenges of deploying autonomy in the logistics sector today, and why having a human in the loop is essential:
“Autonomous vehicles and automation in various nodes of the supply chain represent the holy grail in many ways….Like the holy grail, however, plug-and-play autonomous operation is elusive. In well-defined and constrained environments, autonomous systems do well, but drop them into messy, vague situations with multiple edge cases and they are frequently overwhelmed, park themselves, and ponder in infinite loops. Humans, on the other hand, come well equipped to parse and filter irrelevant noise in these situations and drive forward.”
The Report goes on to highlight the unique value of Phantom’s remote operation technology:
"Cofounders Shai Magzimof and Elliot Katz launched the company in 2017 with the mission of decoupling labor from location in logistics. The groundswell of remote work in the wake of the pandemic should help propel their mission and it’s interesting to think of the potential of work for people in rural and remote areas as well as disabled workers who would otherwise be unable to operate heavy machinery and equipment. The potential to put humans in the loop when they are most needed regardless of their location seems like a powerful concept."
PitchBook subscribers and members can read the full report here.
About Phantom Auto
Phantom Auto specializes in remote operation of all logistics vehicles. Phantom’s human-centric interoperable solutions enable people to remotely supervise, assist, and drive vehicle fleets from up to thousands of miles away – including forklifts, robots, trucks, and more. By decoupling labor from location, the company increases labor access and retention, safety, productivity, and resilience across the supply chain. With Phantom, supply chain operators can tap into drivers from anywhere — connecting people who want to work with jobs that need to be filled. The company’s proprietary software delivers secure, low-latency communication over volatile wireless networks for reliable sensor streaming and safe vehicle control. For more information about Phantom, visit www.phantomauto.com.