E27- From pilot to production: Where robotics actually breaks

Industrial automation in Southeast Asia is moving beyond experimentation into real-world execution, and the stakes are rising quickly. In January 2026, Singapore-based robotics company Botsync secured additional Series A funding from SGInnovate, signalling growing investor confidence in the region’s smart manufacturing push. But scaling robotics is not just about deploying machines but about integrating intelligence into complex, live operations.

In this interview with e27, Rahul Nambiar, CEO and co-founder of Botsync, breaks down what it takes to move from pilot projects to multi-site rollouts, where automation delivers real ROI, and why orchestration is becoming the true battleground. As labour shortages intensify and manufacturing digitises, Botsync’s journey offers a closer look at how robotics is evolving from a technical solution into critical industrial infrastructure.