Uploaded January 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago

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Industrial automation has traditionally been locked behind six-figure price tags, proprietary control systems, and centralized manufacturing—placing true productivity out of reach for small teams and local builders. The open source skid steer changes that equation. By combining RTK-grade positioning, open hardware controls, and a modular tool ecosystem, we can replicate the capabilities of $180,000 automated machines with a build cost on the order of $20,000. Integrated with open source CNC torch tables, pick-and-place electronics assembly, automated heavy tool changers, and wearable exoskeletons, this platform transforms construction and agriculture from brute labor into precision manufacturing. What was once reserved for industrial giants becomes accessible to communities, cooperatives, and small enterprises—enabling distributed production, rapid infrastructure build-out, and a future where anyone can participate in building civilization with professional-grade capability.

Some heavy hitters on this show:

Nathan is the founder of Sparkfun, sparkfun.com/, now informally its CTO. Sparkfun is one of the very few successful open source hardware companies in the world. Successful in that it didn't sell out like most other 'open' companies that existed over the last 2 decades. https://www.colorado.edu/atlas/nathan-seidle

Avinash is the founder of Precision Agriculture Research Center - parccommons.org/about.html - and an Open Healthware Postdoc at the Open Source Hardware Association - oshwa.org/team/avinash-baskaran

Notes:

* 10 mm for every 10 km lost for distance from base station
* PARC open source GIS software will be released soon
* groundcontrol.parccommons.org
* openag.ai
* https://www.media.mit.edu/groups/open-agriculture-openag/people/
* github.com/opulo-inc/ohai/blob/main/LICENSE os pnp
* dronecoria.org

docs.google.com/document/d/1XnKc6854Wp6H0aYFDkRvzuxNDEPjFY7yfnsB6yWyCS4/edit?tab=t.0