Kim Povlsen, President of Universal Robots, comments**:**"This is an historic milestone for us, and we are proud of how we have evolved from being a local startup in the basement under the university to becoming a global cobot pioneer and market leader. Above all, it shows that we have a fantastic product and that many companies around the world can see the benefits of using our robots to develop their business."
A 17-year journey
Universal Robots started in 2005, when three young researchers – Esben Østergaard, Kasper Støy, and Kristian Kassow – from the University of Southern Denmark were frustrated by how the robots of the time were heavy, expensive and complicated to use. This gave them the idea to create a robot that is flexible, safe to work with and easier to install and program.
Since then, Universal Robots has developed a range of cobot products, most recently adding the new UR20 to its portfolio, and has sold more than 50,000 cobots worldwide.