KNAPP this week launched KNAPPRobotics.ai Inc., which will develop intelligent robots for the logistics industry. The company will run a new robotics lab in Somerville, Mass.
Wolfgang Toferer will lead KNAPPRobotics.ai as CEO. Christopher Reiß will serve as chief operating officer, and Thomas Zilk will be vice president. KNAPP’s global headquarters is in Graz, Austria.
“Boston offers an extraordinary combination of robotics research, entrepreneurship and a pool of highly qualified talent,” stated Toferer. “Our goal is to build an innovation hub that adds fresh impetus to the entire KNAPP group and optimally complement the strengths of our location in Graz. This allows us to combine the innovative power of a worldwide leading robotics ecosystem with KNAPP’s decades of automation and logistics experience.”
The company said it designed its new Boston-area location to be a robotics and AI innovation hub. It will grant KNAPP’s existing robotics center in Graz direct access to Boston’s research and technology ecosystem. It will also enable closer ties with MIT, a renowned center for AI and robotics research.
KNAPPRobotics.ai said the new location will have 30 to 35 employees by early 2027. These will include software developers, AI specialists, and mechatronics and robotics experts. Around 20 of these people will be working in software development and be composed of experienced KNAPP employees.
The company is also looking for new talent from the Boston tech and robotics scene. The center will focus on AI, computer vision, robotics, and product development.
With locations in Austria and the U.S., KNAPP is going global
With KNAPPRobotics.ai, KNAPP said it is establishing a global organization. Its Graz center will still lead robotics development, logistics know-how and achieving industrial readiness. The Boston location will serve as an international innovation and technology hub for specific industrial applications.
Together, KNAPP said these centers will form a well-connected network of competence linking research, product development, and solution design and deployment.
The new hub in Boston was founded with the aim of translating market requirements into scalable and profitable robotics solutions more quickly. As the group-wide business owner of robotics, KNAPPRobotics.ai unites product management, development, and implementation under one roof. Its stated goal is to shorten KNAPP’s development cycles, accelerate product launch, and pave the way for robotics to become a scalable product and solution business.
“Robotics is developing at a rapid pace, while customers are expecting solutions that can be implemented quickly, operated reliably, and scaled at a global level,” said Gerald Hofer, the CEO of KNAPP AG. “With KNAPPRobotics.ai, we are laying the organizational foundation that will enable us to firmly link innovation, product development, and product launch management and turn new technologies into real customer applications faster.”
Physical AI is a driver for the new facility
At the core of KNAPPRobotics.ai’s endeavors are physical AI systems. These are able to perceive their environment, make decisions, and perform physical tasks reliably.
For example, physical AI can be used to carry out piece picking, bin picking, cycle counting, and other processes throughout the material flow in a warehouse, said the company.
The KNAPP Brain oversees AI, computer vision, grip point calculation, motion planning, and continuous learning. The platform provides “a powerful basis for intelligent robotics solutions,” according to KNAPP.
Besides innovating, KNAPPRobotics.ai said it aims to turn its technologies into scalable, robust, and profitable applications for warehouse logistics. KNAPP has been collaborating with MIT for several years and became a member of the MIT Industrial Liaison Program (ILP) in 2026.
The company said its proximity to MIT will enable it to access the most recent scientific knowledge and innovative methods, as well as reach highly qualified talent. Its goal is to accelerate the translation of research results into industrial applications. KNAPPRobotics.ai also plans further strategic development of the KNAPP Brain.
In addition, KNAPP said it is seeking partnerships with other businesses in the area of robot learning, computer vision, autonomous systems, simulation, and intelligent robotics.