A former engineer at humanoid robotics firm Figure AI has filed a lawsuit against the company, alleging he was fired for raising critical safety issues with top executives. Robert Gruendel, who was the principal robotic safety engineer, claims that the robots “were powerful enough to fracture a human skull.” A close call in which one robot narrowly missed striking an employee led to his termination days later.
Gruendel alleges that he was slowly isolated by CEO Brett Adcock and chief engineer Kyle Edelberg, who downplayed his safety concerns. He also claims that the company gutted a critical safety roadmap, despite its importance in investor decisions. Gruendel’s lawsuit raises important questions about the safety of humanoid robots, which are designed to work alongside humans.
Figure AI has denied the allegations, stating that Gruendel was terminated for poor performance and that his claims are false. However, Gruendel’s attorney says the case may be among the first whistleblower cases related to robot safety concerns.
Source: https://futurism.com/robots-and-machines/whistleblower-fired-warning-robot-crush-skull