New York, New York (April 29, 2026) — Global digital transformation company GFT Technologies (GFT-XE) today launched its new AI-powered robotic arms designed for automotive manufacturing. Building on the company's existing work with Google on AI-powered visual inspection, the new technology can not only detect defective parts but also physically remove them from the assembly line — helping manufacturers improve quality and keep production moving at full speed.
While many manufacturers have adopted AI for visual inspection, most systems stop at detection. Software can flag anomalies, but human intervention is still required to act on them, creating delays and increasing the risk of defective parts moving further down the line. And the stakes are quite high, since a single recalled vehicle can cost manufacturers upward of $500 per unit to remediate, ultimately costing them tens of millions. Closing the gap between insight and action, at the speed of a modern assembly line, has become a critical challenge.
GFT is filling this gap, stationing three different robots along factories’ assembly lines to ensure components such as car bumpers, doors, pipes and pieces are manufactured accurately. The first robot uses a camera to verify details on each piece, such as positioning, detecting visual defects and confirming that labels and serial numbers are accurate and readable. This camera is attached directly to the robot's "hand" (called a gripper), which means the robot can move the camera around to capture different angles and ensure every part of the component is checked and nothing gets missed. After inspection, the second robotic arm on the line marks the parts that its previous counterpart identified as defective.
Finally, the third robotic arm built by GFT physically interacts with the line and defective pieces, reducing the need for human intervention. This includes:
- Repositioning parts: When the arm detects a misaligned component, it can correct its position before advancing to the next production stage, proactively preventing defects rather than just catching them.
- Removing parts from the line: When a defect is marked as detected or suspected, the arm can pull the part and flag it for human review, eliminating the risk of human error in defect detection and reducing the likelihood that faulty products leave the factory.
Every photo the camera takes is automatically sent to the cloud, where it is saved so the factory can review them later, keep a record of every inspection, and even use them to improve the system over time. GFT has now incorporated an AI agent into the root cause analysis process, drawing on these images and many other datasets to not only detect a defect but also automatically pinpoint its source, ensuring intervention occurs before additional defective parts are produced. Together, the robotic arms, agentic AI and cloud technology keep production running quickly without sacrificing quality or the ability to improve over time.
One large US-based auto manufacturer has already begun to put this technology to work across its operations.
"Auto manufacturers have been asking the same question for years: how do we get AI off the screen and onto the floor? With this launch, that question has an answer,” said Brandon Speweik, Head of Manufacturing at GFT. “Bringing AI into the physical realm for auto manufacturers requires a partner who understands the intricacies of both the technology and the factory floor. That's been GFT's role for 35 years, and this is the natural extension of it."
This launch builds on GFT's 35+ years of experience helping auto manufacturers, including Ford, modernize their legacy systems and unlock the value of their operational data. By combining deep knowledge of manufacturing workflows with expertise in AI systems integration, GFT continues to push the boundaries of what AI can do beyond the digital realm.
