Matthew Kelly has worked for more than eight years in the industrial automation and robotics industries. He is currently the director of business development with Hai Robotics, a manufacturer of storage and transport robotics systems. Prior to that, he worked at Piedmont National, inVia Robotics, and AutoStore.
Kelly is a graduate of Piedmont University in Georgia with an MBA in business and economics.
Q: How would you describe the current state of the robotics industry?
A: The warehouse market is booming. Over the past few years, many companies explored and evaluated warehouse robotics. Now we’re seeing a clear shift, as businesses are rapidly investing in and deploying robotic systems at scale. This momentum is driven by the emergence of highly flexible and adaptable technologies, which allow companies to automate operations and adjust systems with ease to support evolving business needs.
This new era of automation flexibility empowers businesses to implement solutions gradually, rather than committing to large, rigid Capex [capital expenditure] investments. Instead, many are embracing modular, scalable systems that grow alongside their operations, making automation more accessible and strategically aligned than ever before.
In response, OEMs [original equipment manufacturers] are expanding their capabilities—enhancing software functionality, deepening integration expertise, and offering full turnkey services—all while accelerating leadtimes to meet rising demands for speed and adaptability.
Q: You have worked for several robotics firms during periods of solid industry growth. What changes have you seen during your time in the industry?
A: I’ve seen companies make big promises but deliver little—pouring energy into design and sales while overlooking the customer who not only needs to go live but also must rely on the technology for years to come.
In the high-pressure world of tech startups, success isn’t just about innovation; it’s also about long-term customer impact. The companies that prioritize customer success—ensuring seamless implementation, reliability, and ongoing support—will be the ones still standing when the music stops.
Q: Do the current tariff wars concern you? And how will you continue to support the U.S. market going forward?
A: Right now, tariffs are a rapidly changing situation. It’s difficult to predict exactly what is going to go into effect for which countries and how long it will be in place. Understandably, the markets don’t like uncertainty. Here at Hai, we are taking the same actions we recommend to our customers (and pretty much everyone else)—that is, we are diversifying our supply chain. As a global company, geopolitical shifts are something we have always been conscious of, and our priorities continue to be to maintain reliable and diverse supply chain stability for our partners and customers.
Fortunately, HaiPick Systems [the company’s automated storage and retrieval systems] are unique in that the nonintelligent parts of the system, like racking and totes, can be sourced locally anywhere in the world. We do not require the unique, high-precision parts used for system structures that are required of other foreign-manufactured automated storage and retrieval systems (AS/RS).
Here in America, just like in our other regions, we localize a large part of our system development, including software management and development, along with implementation and aftermarket support, including spare parts storage and distribution. Like most companies, we rely on the global supply chain for manufacturing, but at Hai, we have strategically localized a large amount of our business and solution development to best support our customers.
These are unique times, for sure, but tariffs have always been a part of global business, and Hai has done a good job at proactively developing operations to be resilient to these fluctuations.
Q: What types of robots are your clients seeking and what problems are they trying to solve?
A: Demand for each-picking storage and retrieval systems remains strong, but we’re capitalizing on the growing need for case picking solutions. Traditionally, only shuttle systems could handle full-carton workflows. Now by combining that demand with the rising need for modular, flexible robotics that scale with a customer’s growth and seamlessly integrate into brownfield sites with minimal disruption, we’re delivering a true game-changer.
Our solution doesn’t just keep up with demand; it dramatically increases throughput, boosting pick rates by up to 300%. That’s the kind of impact that moves the needle for our customers.
Q: Are your robots best suited for particular industries and applications?
A: HaiPick Systems have proven highly effective in almost every industry you can think of, but if I had to put three at the top right now, I’d say e-commerce, 3PL [third-party logistics], and manufacturing applications. HaiPick Systems are modular and highly flexible, so they are ideal for businesses that often see changes in their operational workflows. Additionally, our AS/RS solutions are allowing these companies to fulfill orders faster—up to 3x the daily throughput—as well as automatically adjust their internal workflows to seamlessly support demand surges and increase order pick accuracy to 99.9%+. This is obviously helpful for all facilities and is helping 3PLs, in particular, increase their SLA [service level agreement] offerings.
Health-care and food and beverage distribution facilities have also seen unique advantages. With HaiPick Systems, these facilities have package-level visibility on all products in the system, making it easier to track lots and expiration dates. HaiPick Systems can operate in temperature-controlled environments, containers can be easily removed for sanitization, and the fully enclosed and secured nature of the system increases inventory security.
But like I said, facilities in almost every industry have implemented HaiPick Systems. They are ideal for any business looking to condense storage, reduce operating costs, and increase operational speed and throughput.
Q: Labor is difficult to find these days. How can robotics systems, including goods-to-person systems, help DCs facing worker shortages?
A: Not only is labor difficult to find, but workers are also hard to keep, and turnover is expensive.
Robotics are a modern tool your workforce can use to amplify their deliverable rates while simultaneously reducing the amount of stress on the person. Imagine walking 10 to 15 miles a day to pick orders and replenish inventory—every day you go to work. How long until you get tired? Robotic solutions, like HaiPick and other automated storage and retrieval systems, eliminate human travel time for order picking and allow the person to work at an ergonomically designed workstation while the robots do all the heavy lifting and running around. Not only does this improve fulfillment speed and pick accuracy, but it also makes the job more appealing. A person is less likely to leave a company that puts the human’s needs first if the alternative is working for a company that makes them walk a few marathons a week to do the same job.
HaiPick Systems increase operational efficiency by about 4x, increase daily throughput by about 3x, and almost fully eliminate picking errors. Our customers have seen labor costs reduced by 67% as a result.
I don’t foresee the warehouse workforce growing rapidly anytime soon, so robotic solutions like automated storage and retrieval systems can amplify what your workforce is capable of while maintaining the workers you have already invested in.
Q: Hai Robotics has just released HaiPick Climb. What makes this system different from a traditional automated storage system?
A: The HaiPick Climb System is an extremely exciting technology. It has entirely revolutionized how facilities need to approach automation implementation and simplified automation ownership. It is the simple solution for warehouse automation.
The HaiClimber is the first warehouse climbing robot with the ability to easily navigate low-precision environments and travel at the extremely high rate of speed of four meters per second. Plus it requires half the connection points of the typical climbing robots.
It navigates floors with minimal requirements and climbs on channels mounted to almost any industry-standard racking, allowing facilities to avoid the high cost, complexity, and extreme precision limitations needed for the typical AS/RS. Because it uses only two climbing arms connected to channels mounted to one side of the aisle, hardware needed for the system is reduced, allowing for faster implementation and easier aftermarket changes to the system.
This robot freely navigates under racking, allowing each robot to take the most efficient path for fast fulfillment, and the full system avoids robot “traffic jams” in aisles.
Because the HaiClimbers travel so fast and have direct access to each bin at all times, orders can be delivered to picking stations in only two minutes after order intake—43% faster than the typical AS/RS. The HaiClimber both significantly simplifies automation and provides extreme throughput and performance. The HaiPick Climb System is designed to address the needs of real warehouses.
