Danish Robotics Startup Wins IFOY Award with Its First Product

Copenhagen, Denmark--(Newsfile Corp. - August 7, 2026) - The Mobile Robot Company's first product has won the IFOY AWARD 2026 Industrial Truck of the Year, less than two years after the Danish robotics business was founded.

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The J1600 self-driving pallet jack has been named the category winner following practical testing, scientific review and assessment by an international jury of trade journalists. The company was founded in November 2024 and launched the J1600 as its first product in January 2026.

The vehicle can be driven like a conventional electric pallet jack or sent autonomously to saved destinations. An operator handles pickup and situations that require judgment, then hands repetitive travel and floor-level delivery to the machine.

"The award matters because it validates a customer problem, not just a product launch. Warehouses need automation that creates value quickly without asking the operation to become less flexible," said Emil Hauch Jensen, co-founder and CEO of The Mobile Robot Company.

The 2026 IFOY competition received 49 products and solutions. Seventeen finalists completed the multi-stage IFOY Audit at TEST CAMP INTRALOGISTICS in Dortmund, combining practical testing, a scientific Innovation Check and assessment by an independent international jury of trade journalists.

The Innovation Check rated the J1600's functionality and implementation ++, or very good. Novelty, customer benefit and market relevance each received +, or good. It highlighted dual-mode operation, intuitive use and a low implementation barrier.

"What makes the J1600 different is the way familiar pallet-jack control, 3D autonomous navigation and a separate safety architecture work together in one vehicle," said Odin Kudahl Skovsted, co-founder and CTO of The Mobile Robot Company.

The compressed founding-to-award chronology followed years of earlier robotics work by the two founders, who had collectively completed projects for hundreds of customers and helped deploy more than 10,000 robots before creating the company.

The speed from incorporation to international recognition is part of a wider shift in industrial robotics. New suppliers are increasingly entering established equipment categories with tightly focused automation: solving one costly movement well, using familiar controls and fitting the technology into the operation that is already there.

About the J1600 self-driving pallet jack

The J1600 is a made-in-Denmark, dual-mode self-driving pallet jack with a rated payload of 1,600 kg. An operator can drive it conventionally, lift manually up to 1.6 m and handle close positioning; autonomous mode covers suitable indoor travel between saved locations and delivers at floor level.

The vehicle creates a three-dimensional map while it is driven, uses 3D LiDAR SLAM for localization and route planning, and keeps navigation separate from its dedicated personnel-protection system. A physical button confirms autonomous start, while movement of the tiller restores manual control immediately.

About The Mobile Robot Company

The Mobile Robot Company ApS is a Danish robotics business founded in November 2024 and headquartered in Hvidovre, Denmark. The J1600, introduced in January 2026, is the company's first product and has now won the IFOY AWARD 2026 Industrial Truck of the Year less than two years after incorporation.

Co-founders Emil Hauch Jensen and Odin Kudahl Skovsted brought experience from hundreds of customer projects and more than 10,000 robot deployments completed before the company was formed. The business focuses on making industrial automation faster to adopt, easier to change and practical in existing warehouse and production environments.

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