YC-Backed Bucket Robotics: How It Survived Its First CES
▼ Summary
– Bucket Robotics’ CEO Matt Puchalski drove 12 hours to CES 2026 to ensure the startup’s gear arrived safely, avoiding potential flight delays.
– The company, part of Y Combinator’s Spring 2024 batch, uses advanced vision systems to automate surface quality inspections in manufacturing.
– Its technology works from CAD files to generate simulated defects, allowing for quick deployment without manual data labeling or new hardware.
– The startup attracted consistent interest at CES, leading to technical discussions and follow-ups with potential customers in automotive and defense.
– Puchalski views the automation as solving a long-standing industry challenge, not as a threat to existing manual inspection jobs.
Navigating the sprawling spectacle of CES for the first time is a formidable challenge for any startup, requiring meticulous preparation and relentless hustle. For YC-backed Bucket Robotics, the journey to the 2026 Consumer Electronics Show began with a strategic gamble. Fearing flight delays could derail their entire exhibit, CEO Matt Puchalski opted against the original plan of distributing booth parts among the team’s luggage. Instead, he packed a rented Hyundai Santa Fe to the brim and embarked on a twelve-hour drive through the rain to ensure their gear arrived safely in Las Vegas. This determination set the tone for their entire conference experience, proving that sometimes the road less traveled is the most reliable.
Based in San Francisco, Bucket Robotics entered CES as one of thousands of hopeful exhibitors. With a modest setup in the automotive-focused West Hall, the team knew standing out would require constant effort. Puchalski, an engineer with a decade of experience at companies like Uber and Argo AI, leveraged his industry connections throughout the week. He was spotted at networking events, engaged in late-night strategy sessions, and was even preparing over breakfast on Media Day, demonstrating the tireless commitment essential for a young company’s debut.
It was during one of these chance meetings that Puchalski revealed his company’s mission. Emerging from Y Combinator’s Spring 2024 batch, Bucket Robotics focuses on automating surface quality inspection using advanced vision systems. Puchalski humorously described the manual alternative as a job for “dudes in Wisconsin,” highlighting an industry-wide challenge. The goal is to accelerate the reshoring of manufacturing by solving a tedious, yet critical, task, ensuring products like car door handles are structurally sound and visually flawless, free from color mismatches, scuffs, or burn marks.
The core innovation lies in solving a significant data problem. Rather than relying on manually labeled images of defects, Bucket Robotics’ software uses a part’s CAD file to generate simulated defects. This approach allows their vision models to learn and deploy rapidly, adapting to production line changes without needing new hardware. This capability to integrate into existing systems has already attracted interest from automotive and defense sectors, positioning the company on a promising dual-use trajectory.
On the show floor, interest was immediate and sustained. The first two hours were intense, with attendees scrutinizing their display and engaging in deep technical discussions. Puchalski noted that the level of serious inquiry remained high throughout the week, leading to a flurry of follow-up calls with potential customers and investors after the event concluded.
Surviving the CES gauntlet is one thing; building a lasting business is the next, harder challenge. Puchalski, however, views his company’s technology not as a threat to manual inspectors, but as a tool to augment a decades-long industry effort. Those roles involve not just spotting flaws but diagnosing their root causes. For Bucket Robotics, the real excitement is in finally providing manufacturers with a viable, efficient solution to a persistent problem, turning their CES survival into a launchpad for future growth.
(Source: TechCrunch)
