By Contessa Gayles @CNNMoney July 3, 2014: 11:02 AM ET
Kiva robots
3 of 5
Year acquired by Amazon: 2012
Cost: $775 million
The robot invasion is upon us! Amazon has been using Kiva Systems' fleet of orange robots for years, and Amazon decided to buy the company two years ago.
There are now 1,000 of the robots zooming around Amazon's warehouse floors. The mobile helpers were created to make the order fulfillment process cheaper and more efficient, supplementing or replacing traditional, human-operated methods like conveyor belts, forklifts and boxing by hand. By the end of the year, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos said the company will increase the number of Kiva robots it uses to 10,000.
If you want to witness how the robots are helping bring that Kindle from your online shopping cart to your doorstep first hand, you're in luck: Amazon opened the doors to a selection of its fulfillment centers for public tours in April, 2014.
