Path Robotics, a Columbus-based company that has grown from a family-founded startup into a company of more than 300 employees, is hiring for more than 50 positions locally across AI, robotics, engineering, sales, and operations as demand for its systems grows. The company develops AI models that let robots autonomously perform complex manufacturing tasks, starting with welding and expanding into new applications. CEO and co-founder Andy Lonsberry said keeping that work in Ohio was a decision made at the start, stating “Ohio is in our DNA.” Lonsberry pointed to two talent pools that meet in Columbus: graduates of research institutions such as Ohio State University and workers with decades of hands-on manufacturing experience. He said “We see no reason why the next great AI companies need to be built in Silicon Valley,” and framed Ohio’s position firmly, saying “We believe that Ohio has already solidified its status as the capital of physical AI.” He also pointed to companies such as 1872 investing in AI-native manufacturing facilities in the state; the Cincinnati startup opened an autonomous steel fabrication factory in the Camp Washington neighborhood in July, backed by a $15 million seed round, and uses Path Robotics’ robotic welding systems. Noah Ford joined Path Robotics as a senior machine learning engineer in March 2026.