<p>Robots have been put to work in manufacturing and other industries for decades now. But until recently, most were so dangerous that they needed to be kept behind barriers to protect their human coworkers.</p><p>Steve Cousins, the former CEO of famed robotics lab Willow Garage, wants to move the new generation of human-friendly robots into the service sector. His latest startup, Savioke, announced today that it has raised $2 million in seed funding to further develop its first autonomous, easy-to-use robot. Morado Venture Partners led the round, joined by AME Cloud Ventures, Google Ventures and individual investors.</p><p>Steve Cousins. Photo courtesy of Savioke.</p><p>"We think there is a huge [opportunity] in the service industry: places where people live, sleep, work eat, but they are not homes," Cousins said. "It will signal a very important step in moving robots out of the lab and out of the factory and really starting to see them among us."</p><p><a href="http://gigaom.com/2014/04/09/savioke-raises-2m-to-bring-a-personable-robot-to-the-service-industry/">Keep reading...</a></p><p>Read also:</p><p><a href="http://techcrunch.com/2014/04/09/led-by-ex-ceo-of-willow-garage-savioke-gets-2m-from-ame-google-ventures-to-build-a-service-robot/">From The Ashes Of Willow Garage, Savioke Gets $ 2M To Build A &#039;Services ...</a> (TechCrunch)</p><p><a href="http://spectrum.ieee.org/automaton/robotics/industrial-robots/savioke-scores-2-million-in-seed-funding-from-google-ventures-others">Savioke Scores $ 2 Million in Seed Funding From Google Ventures and Others</a> (IEEE Spectrum)</p><p><a href="http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20140409005334/en/Savioke-Secures-Seed-Funding-AME-Cloud-Ventures">Savioke Secures Seed Funding From AME Cloud Ventures, Google Ventures ...</a> (Business Wire (press release))</p><p>Explore: <a href="http://news.google.com/news/more?ncl=dKh6uzL_2OH0D2MFFMA37EFiassoM&authuser=0&ned=us">6 additional articles.</a></p>