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It’s been a weirdly big week for robotic hands in Vancouver.

First, Nexera Robotics, which is tackling the tech behind robotic grasping, announced the completion of its latest investment round of $4.5 million. Its product, NeuraGrasp, addresses one of the most (excuse the pun) pressing challenges in automation: the ability to handle different items in environments that change. Nexera combines its unique grasping method with AI perception, which the company says enables robots to handle a wide range of objects with “unprecedented precision and adaptability.”

Unrelatedly and just a day earlier, Sanctuary AI, which is building human-like general purpose robots, announced that it’s adding a new tactile sensor into its eerily human Phoenix robots. The move will help teleoperation pilots move the hands of the machine with more dexterity in order to improve tasks that involve touch.

Coincidentally (and also on the same day), Sarcomere Dynamics — which builds Artus Lite: a dexterous robotic hand designed for general-purpose automation — officially settled into a larger office space in the city. Sarcomere says the expansion reflects its rapid growth and commitment to scaling up production of its hand.

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Here’s one good thing to emerge from the threat of Trump's tariffs: across the country, organizations and governments are making it easier for Canadian companies to trade between provinces.

Diana Gibson — B.C.’s minister for jobs, economic development, and innovation — met in Toronto on Friday with her counterparts on the Committee on Internal Trade, in order to make “substantive changes" to interprovincial trade barriers. That in-person gathering followed an online meeting last week where Gibson said she will “do whatever is necessary” to ensure easier trade across Canada, and that she’s willing to put forward legislation, if it’s required.

Meanwhile, non-partisan industry associations the Business Council of British Columbia, Business Council of Alberta, the Saskatchewan Chamber of Commerce, and the Business Council of Manitoba announced the formation of the Western Business Coalition. The alliance focuses on “ensuring Canada reaches its full economic potential by unlocking the economic power of the West.” For the coalition, that begins with natural resources, and trade. 

The tide continues to roll forward on buying local. Our advice? Start planning now about how to increase your Canadian customer base.

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It’s an interesting time in the city’s job market.

This week, Vancouver-founded TELUS offered buyouts to about 560 employees across the country. It’s the second time this month that the telecom giant has offered voluntary severance packages as the company pushes for more self-serve solutions. Telus said that its offers are "generous".

Meanwhile, those who are hiring have questions about the rapid shift in culture for those applying for roles. Kaylee Lieffers, CEO of Vancouver-based whitelabel beauty brand Blanka, posted a thought-provoking question on LinkedIn about the use of ChatGPT and other generative AI tools on job applications. In the past week, she writes, at least half of the answers to her hiring questions were obviously written by AI.

“On one hand, I appreciate the resourcefulness of the candidates. On the other, I now have no idea what their actual communication style is or why they genuinely want to work here,” she writes. “Do others who are hiring experience this? Should candidates using AI for screening questions be an automatic dealbreaker?!”

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