Automated Tire, Inc. (ATI), a physical AI and robotics company modernizing the traditional automotive service bay, has announced its emergence from stealth and unveiled SmartBay, its industry-first, AI-powered robotic platform designed to execute automotive services, starting with tire changes, wheel balancing, and vehicle inspections.
With the SmartBay platform, automotive dealerships and tire and service centers can shift from inconsistent technician-driven processes to a technology-first system that understands, adapts and executes complex physical tasks in real time.
SmartBay uses advanced robotics, computer vision, and machine learning to generate the proper execution for each vehicle with precision, rather than relying on pre-programmed routines, which require manual intervention for outliers and real-world variables.
Andy Chalofsky, CEO, Automated Tire, Inc, says: “While the auto industry has made great strides with advanced technologies over recent decades, automotive service bays have seen little innovation to match.
“Most notably, electric vehicles wear through tires up to 30 percent faster. The proliferation of EVs (electric vehicles) creates significantly more tire service opportunities, but tire technician jobs are dirty, injury-prone, and difficult to fill.
“Our SmartBay platform gives modern shops a meaningful solution to turn a dangerous, manual chore into a high-tech, automated process that matches the sophistication of the vehicles being serviced.”
The proprietary SmartBay platform:
- enables a single technician to manage up to three service bays simultaneously, cutting the time required for a full tire service roughly in half, to as little as 30 minutes;
- works across most consumer vehicles, performing a unique execution for each vehicle, managing real-world variability without human intervention;
- minimizes material waste and delivers a superior ride quality with its precision wheel-weight tool that dispenses the exact amount of weight composite required for the industry’s most accurate balance; and
- fits entirely within a standard 12-foot service bay, maintaining full bay functionality and flexibility across other services when needed.
SmartBay addresses three primary concerns in the automotive service industry: an ongoing and increasing labor shortage; automation of tire changes, the most injury-prone aspect of routine automotive service; and increasing service bay throughput by significantly reducing the time required for tire changes.
According to a report from the National Automotive Dealers Association (NADA), the industry faces a shortage of at least 37,000 new technicians annually, as seasoned technicians retire and fewer young professionals enter the trade. This shortage leaves shop owners trapped in a cycle of understaffing and expensive retraining.
That perpetual cycle worsens as high technician churn leads to inconsistent service quality and even more grueling wait times that frustrate customers and compress profit margins.
