# Vesper by Datameister: full site text > Vesper by Datameister makes industrial robots flexible enough for high-mix work. Your engineers decide what the robot does; Vesper writes, proves and documents the program. Source: https://vesper.dev/ (8 pages, in order below). Summary: https://vesper.dev/llms.txt # Home (https://vesper.dev/) ## Generative robot programming: Automate the stations nobody could. **Vesper** makes industrial robots flexible enough for high-mix work. Your engineers decide what the robot does; Vesper writes, proves and documents the program. [Check your station](https://vesper.dev/fit-check/) [Book a quick talk](https://vesper.dev/contact/?request=Quick%20talk) - [Any industry with high-mix work](https://vesper.dev/#use-cases) - [First place in the Intrinsic AI for Industry Challenge qualifiers](https://datameister.ai/blog/intrinsic-ai-for-industry-challenge-qualifying-first/) - [Runs locally, in your plant](https://vesper.dev/how-it-works/#deploy-stage) - [Built and run in Europe](https://vesper.dev/safety/#data-security) ## The problem: Today, your line changes and your robot doesn't. A classic robot cell is programmed for one part, one pattern, one position. Every new variant means a new integration project. So the high-mix stations stay manual, while the people who run them get harder to find. ## Use cases: With Vesper, your robot keeps up. ### Palletising and depalletising Mixed and deformable packaging. A new pattern is just a new task. ### Bin picking Parts in random poses, even inside a floppy plastic bag. ### Line feeding Adapts to every part, stillage and rack, at takt time. ### Assembly and cable insertion Finds the right plug wherever it sits, with vision, depth and pressure sensors. ### Kitting Varying items per order, including small bagged parts and soft packs. ### Machine tending Small batches and frequent changeovers. These six are where we usually start, not where we stop. Wherever a fixed program can't keep up with the task, Vesper can. [Check your station](https://vesper.dev/fit-check/) Cable insertion. **First place.** First place in the qualifiers of the [Intrinsic AI for Industry Challenge](https://datameister.ai/blog/intrinsic-ai-for-industry-challenge-qualifying-first/) (Alphabet's Intrinsic; jury drawn from Google DeepMind, NVIDIA, Open Robotics, Foxconn, Universal Robots), on dexterous cable insertion. The canonical contact-rich manipulation task, judged by the people building the field. ## Payback: Stations that never paid back, finally automated. 9–18months Indicative payback on a typical station running two shifts. We work out the figure for your station during the Floor Walk. - Product changes no longer need a new project - Your own team makes the changes - Connects to your ERP and MES Where the money goes in a classic robot cell Robot hardware1× Engineering and integration1.4–3× Most of the cost is engineering, and it comes back with every change. That is the part Vesper takes out. Integration cost: Datameister analysis of eight independent robot-cell cost estimates. Payback: indicative, one station on two shifts. [See if your station fits](https://vesper.dev/fit-check/) ## How it works: Your engineers stay in control. Their time goes into streamlining the process, not into robot code. [Video: A mobile manipulator drives to a conveyor station, picks a part off the line, and places it into a crate on a trolley.] "Serve conveyor 3 while line 1 is down." One brief. The robot moves to where it's needed. **Bring the task.** Tell us what the station needs to do. **See it proven.** Tested on your station's cases before it moves. **Your engineers approve.** Nothing runs without their sign-off. **Your team takes over.** Changes on the line are made by your own people. [See a changeover, start to finish](https://vesper.dev/how-it-works/) ## Safety: People come first. Every program is proven before it moves. **Simulated first.** In a digital twin of your own cell. **Certified safety envelope.** Limits the robot may never cross. **Readable and traceable.** Which version ran, where and when. **Your team signs off.** Programs run locally, in your plant. Ready for the EU Machinery Regulation, which applies from January 2027. [How we keep it safe](https://vesper.dev/safety/) ## How we like to proceed: Start with a quick talk, then claim a Floor Walk. 01 **Quick talk.** A sanity check on your stations and a first view on fit.30 to 60 minutes 02 **Vesper Floor Walk.** Our engineers walk your floor with your team and map where Vesper pays back first. We do these for free, so we can only take on five per quarter.Limited capacity · 3 of 5 left for Q4 2026 03 **Feasibility.** We test the task in simulation and tell you what it takes.5 working days 04 **Fixed-fee pilot.** One station, from brief to a proven program on your hardware.Live in weeks After the first station, your team takes over: **run it, re-task it, then automate the next ones.** ## Contact: Bring us the task. A new station, a change on a running line, or a task that was never worth its own robot. Tell us a bit about the station, and we'll get back to you to set up a first call. [Check your station](https://vesper.dev/fit-check/)[Claim a Floor Walk](https://vesper.dev/contact/?request=Floor%20Walk) - **Product:** [Use cases](https://vesper.dev/#use-cases)[How it works](https://vesper.dev/how-it-works/)[Safety](https://vesper.dev/safety/)[FAQ](https://vesper.dev/faq/) - **Get started:** [Check your station](https://vesper.dev/fit-check/)[Claim a Floor Walk](https://vesper.dev/contact/?request=Floor%20Walk)[Book a quick talk](https://vesper.dev/contact/?request=Quick%20talk) - **Company:** [About](https://vesper.dev/about/)[For integrators](https://vesper.dev/partners/)[Investors](https://vesper.dev/contact/?request=Investor%20conversation) - **Where we are:** Ghent, Belgium. Built and run in Europe. # How it works (https://vesper.dev/how-it-works/) ## How it works: How Vesper works You describe the task. Vesper writes the program and proves it in a twin of your cell. Your engineers approve. ## An example from the floor: A packaging line switches from 330 ml to 250 ml bottles tomorrow. ## A new board variant arrives on the assembly line on Monday. *A product change on a running line* **Production engineer:** Line 2 switches to the 250 ml bottle tomorrow. Same case pattern.bottle-250ml.step **Vesper AI:** Program rebuilt. 1,400 cycles in the twin, 2 failures, both recovered. **Vesper AI:** The grip slips on the narrower neck. Moved it to the body and proved it again. Approve? **Production engineer:** Approved. **Vesper AI:** Ready for tomorrow's first shift. [Video: A mobile manipulator drives to a conveyor station, picks a part off the line, and places it into a crate on a trolley.] "Serve conveyor 3 while line 1 is down." One brief. The robot moves to where it's needed. *A new product variant* **Process engineer:** Board variant B starts Monday. Connector 12 mm further along, longer cable.board-b.step **Vesper AI:** Program rebuilt. 2,000 insertions in the twin, 3 failures, all recovered. **Vesper AI:** The longer cable catches on the clamp. Rerouted it and proved it again. Approve? **Production engineer:** Approved. **Vesper AI:** Ready for the afternoon shift. Cable insertion: first place in the [Intrinsic AI for Industry Challenge](https://datameister.ai/blog/intrinsic-ai-for-industry-challenge-qualifying-first/) qualifiers. Both examples are illustrative. ## Under the hood: Three stages, from brief to running robot. 01 **Plan.** You bring the task and the acceptance bar. We scan your cell into a digital twin. 02 **Prove.** Vesper tests candidate programs against thousands of variations and the certified safety envelope. 03 **Deploy.** Your engineers review the program and the evidence, then it runs locally on the cell's industrial PC. ## What it lets you do: One approach, four ways it pays off on the floor. Too much variation for a fixed program. **Adapt:** Programs see the scene, so parts, packaging and placement can vary. Too few hours to justify its own robot. **Relocate:** One robot moves between stations and serves them all. Too much change for the integration economics. **Re-task:** A change on the line is a brief, not an integration project. Too many similar stations to program one by one. **Replicate:** A proven program rolls out to similar stations, adapted and proven again for each. ## Hardware: Hardware-agnostic. Any robot, cobot or humanoid. Your programs carry over when the hardware changes. *Classical automation* ### Task-built cell One robot, one task, one layout. *Vesper runs on it* ### Industrial arm or cobot Tooling swaps per task. *Vesper runs on it* ### Mobile manipulator Shared between stations. *Vesper runs on it* ### Humanoid When the next generation lands, Vesper rebuilds every task for it. ## Your options: The reliability of classic automation, with the flexibility of people. | | Keep it manual | Fixed cell + integrator | Vesper | |---|---|---|---| | Variation in parts and poses | ✓ With operators | ✕ Needs fixtures and jigs | ✓ Programs see the scene | | Cost of a product change | ~ Retraining staff | ✕ A new integration project | ✓ A short update, proven before it runs | | Who changes the program | ~ Not applicable | ✕ The integrator, by the hour | ✓ Your own team | | Volume to pay back | ~ Not applicable | ✕ High volume, stable line | ✓ Hours shared across stations | | Safety and CE | ~ Workplace rules | ✕ Per cell, again after changes | ✓ Designed for CE from the start | # Safety (https://vesper.dev/safety/) ## Safety: People come first. Every program is proven and safety-checked before it moves. ### Simulated first. Each program runs in a digital twin of your own cell, against thousands of variations, before it touches the robot. ### Certified safety envelope. Every program is machine-checked against a certified envelope: the limits the robot may never cross. ### Readable and traceable. No black box. Readable code, with a record of which version ran, where and when. ### Your team signs off. Nothing runs without your engineers' approval. Programs run locally, in your plant. Ergonomics Safer work for operators. Heavy, repetitive lifting moves to the robot, and your team moves to work that needs their judgment. EU Machinery Regulation Ready today for the new rules. Vesper is already designed for the EU Machinery Regulation, ahead of it applying in January 2027. Re-tasking inside the certified envelope does not restart certification. Data & security Programs run locally, in your plant. Built and run in Europe. What leaves your plant is explicit and under your control. # Station fit-check (https://vesper.dev/fit-check/) ## Station fit-check: Is your station a fit? Pick one station that still runs by hand and answer six questions about it. We'll tell you whether Vesper is a good fit and what the next step would be. - You see the result straight away. No email needed. - If a classic robot cell suits the station better, we'll tell you. The fit-check needs JavaScript. You can also [tell us about your station](https://vesper.dev/contact/) directly. # FAQ (https://vesper.dev/faq/) ## Questions we hear on the floor: Frequently asked What happens if something goes wrong mid-shift? Recovery is part of what we test before anything runs, and the robot stays within its safety limits. We agree the acceptance bar with you up front. Which industries do you work with? Any industry with high-mix work: stations where variation, low volumes or frequent change kept automation out. If you are unsure, the fit-check gives a first read in two minutes. Which robots does Vesper work with? Vesper is hardware-agnostic: it runs on industrial arms, cobots, mobile manipulators and humanoids, from any brand. We confirm your exact models in the quick talk. Do we need our own automation team? No. We integrate Vesper into your first station and hand your team the controls as it matures: operate it, then re-task it, then create new programs yourselves. Who maintains the cell? We support the first station until your team is ready to run it, and stay available after that. Who carries the CE marking? Where a mechanical build is needed, a partner builds the cell and carries its CE marking. What about the integrator we work with today? They can stay involved: partners build the cell, Vesper handles the programming. What data leaves our plant? Programs run locally, inside your network. What leaves your plant for training is explicit and controlled. Vesper is built and run in Europe. What does it cost? The quick talk and the Floor Walk cost nothing. Because the Floor Walk is free, we have capacity for only five per quarter. After the feasibility check you get a fixed fee for a pilot on one station, so you know the price before you commit. # About (https://vesper.dev/about/) ## About: Built by people who have shipped AI to the factory floor before. **Vesper** is built and run in Europe by Datameister, the AI research and deployment lab founded by Ruben Verhack and Axel Vlaminck. Axel VlaminckCTO, co-founder Ruben VerhackCEO, co-founder Axel Vlaminck and Ruben Verhack, co-founders ## The road to Vesper: Over a decade of AI research and industrial software. 2010s **Research.** 3D AI, Gaussian-kernel rendering and quadruped robot control. 2017 **Oqton.** AI for robotic welding, CNC machining and metal 3D printing. 2021 **Exit.** Oqton acquired for $180M. 2023 **Datameister.** Vision, 3D and physical AI in production. Self-funded and profitable. 2026 **Vesper.** Next-generation automation, made accessible for factories. CEO and co-founder ### Ruben Verhack, PhD - Double PhD in computer science, Ghent University and TU Berlin. - Invented a precursor of Gaussian Splatting. - Senior AI engineer and AI product manager at Oqton: robotic welding and geometric reasoning. - Google Faculty Award. Best Paper, IEEE Transactions on Multimedia. Invited talks at Google, Disney Research and Netflix. CTO and co-founder ### Axel Vlaminck - MSc in industrial engineering, electronics. - Published research on quadruped robot control in 2017, well before "physical AI" was a term. - One of the first employees at Oqton and a principal driver of its AI team, through the acquisition in 2021. - Signal processing, computer vision, point clouds and physics simulation. - NVIDIA Inception member - Google Faculty Award - IEEE Best Paper - 3D generative AI at a Fortune 100 company # For integrators, machine builders and robotics platforms (https://vesper.dev/partners/) ## For integrators, machine builders and platforms: Deliver more robot programs, with Vesper. Take on the high-mix stations your customers keep asking about, without building an AI research team. You deliver programs on Vesper; Vesper generates and proves them. [Start a partner conversation](https://vesper.dev/contact/?request=Partner%20conversation) ## How a partnership works: A partner license. A base license plus a component that scales with robots. - **You:** Own the customer relationship, the hardware and the integration work on the floor. - **We:** Supply Vesper, the program generator, and support your engineers. - Integrators - Machine builders - Robotics platforms # Contact (https://vesper.dev/contact/) ## Bring us the task: A new station, a change on a running line, or a task that was never worth its own robot. Tell us a bit about the station, and we'll get back to you to set up a first call.