ReOps Intellitech Named a Top 10 Finalist in the Automate 2026 Startup Challenge

Released on

Jul 21, 2026

Read

3 min

Ten Startups. One Stage. Chicago.

Every June the automation world gathers for Automate, North America’s largest robotics and automation show run by the Association for Advancing Automation (A3). This year it filled McCormick Place in Chicago from June 22 to 25. With it came the Automate Startup Challenge, where ten startups from across the industry are selected to pitch live on stage.

We are proud to share that ReOps Intellitech was named one of the ten finalists for 2026.

Our name and BIROS sit right there on the official lineup: ReOps Intellitech on the official Automate 2026 Top 10 announcement.

We are proud to share that ReOps Intellitech was named one of the ten finalists for 2026.

Our name and BIROS sit right there on the official lineup: ReOps Intellitech on the official Automate 2026 Top 10 announcement.

The Automate 2026 show floor at McCormick Place in Chicago. Photo: Automate / A3

What the Judges Saw: BIROS

A3’s announcement framed the case for our category well. Robots belong in environments “either too small or too dangerous for humans.” That is exactly where BIROS goes to work.

BIROS is our bio-inspired snake robot. It slips through collapsed structures, pipelines and tight industrial interiors that wheels, legs and people cannot safely enter. Operators drive it manually when they want control and let it run autonomously when they need reach. At its core sits a patent-pending drive and skin design.

Hazards do not stop at the waterline either. BIROS Subsea takes the same platform underwater.

A3’s announcement framed the case for our category well. Robots belong in environments “either too small or too dangerous for humans.” That is exactly where BIROS goes to work.

Hazards do not stop at the waterline either. BIROS Subsea takes the same platform underwater.

The BIROS prototype. Mobility First. Visibility Before Risk.

Five Minutes on the Main Stage

The format is unforgiving in the best way: a five-minute pitch, then five minutes of questions from a jury of industry experts in the Automate Show Theater on day one of the show. On the line sat $10,000 and the title of 2026 Startup Challenge Champion.

The company we kept made it sweeter. The finalist lineup ranged from dexterous robotic hands and physical-AI operating systems to AI-driven robot orchestration. Standing in that field with a snake robot built for disaster response is exactly where we want BIROS to be.

On stage at the Automate Show Theater. Photo: Automate / A3

What This Means for ReOps

For us this is validation of a simple belief: machines should go in first so people don’t have to. It is also proof that a lean, engineering-first team from India can stand on automation’s biggest global stage and belong there.

A finalist spot puts BIROS in front of the integrators, operators and investors who define this industry. It also sharpens our roadmap for the BIROS family on land and underwater.

The Road Ahead

Our thanks go to A3 and the Automate Startup Challenge team for the stage. Thanks as well to everyone who met us in Chicago and asked the hard questions.

If you are curious what our robots can do, explore BIROS and BIROS Subsea. You can also talk to us about pilots and partnerships. This Top 10 is a milestone, not the destination.