Company Directory › Robotics › Embodied AI & Robot Software › BlackBerry QNX vs Covariant
BlackBerry QNX vs Covariant
BlackBerry QNX and Covariant are both robot software & embodied AI companies. Their verified profiles differ on headquarters and product lines. The table below sets out only those rows; everything else is on each company's own profile. Facts verified 9 November 2026.
Where they differ
| Company | BlackBerry QNX | Covariant |
|---|---|---|
| Headquarters | Ottawa, Canada | Emeryville, California, United States |
| Product lines | the QNX SDP microkernel real-time operating system and the QNX Hypervisor | the Covariant Brain embodied AI platform and the RFM-1 robotics foundation model for robotic picking |
Market context: Canada
Industrial robot installations, 2025: almost 4,000 (+5% year on year). This counts industrial robots installed in Canada during the year, whichever country the supplier comes from; it describes the destination market and is not a figure about BlackBerry QNX.
Source: International Federation of Robotics (IFR), World Robotics 2026, released 24 September 2026.
Market context: United States
Industrial robot installations, 2025: almost 38,500 (+12% year on year). This counts industrial robots installed in the United States during the year, whichever country the supplier comes from; it describes the destination market and is not a figure about Covariant.
Source: International Federation of Robotics (IFR), World Robotics 2026, released 24 September 2026.
How BlackBerry QNX and Covariant differ
BlackBerry QNX and Covariant both write robot software, but at opposite layers of the stack. From Ottawa, Canada, BlackBerry QNX supplies the QNX SDP microkernel real-time operating system and the QNX Hypervisor, the foundational layer that runs safety-critical robots and vehicles. From Emeryville, California, Covariant builds the Covariant Brain embodied AI platform and RFM-1, a robotics foundation model that teaches arms to pick items in warehouses. QNX is concerned with the machine never missing its timing; Covariant is concerned with the machine understanding what it is holding. Their buyers underline the split: QNX, a division of the listed BlackBerry Limited, is bought as embedded software for automotive, robotics, industrial controls, medical devices, transportation, rail, aerospace and defence programmes. Covariant, founded in 2017 as Embodied Intelligence, raised approximately $222 million through its 2023 Series C, and since August 2024 has continued in reduced form after Amazon took a non-exclusive licence to its foundation models and hired its founders and about 25% of its employees. One is a permanent layer inside other companies' machines; the other is a specialist model maker whose technology now also sits inside a much larger company's roadmap.
Frequently asked questions
What is the main difference between BlackBerry QNX and Covariant?
BlackBerry QNX is based in Ottawa, Canada and Covariant in Emeryville, California, United States; they also differ on product lines. The table above sets out both companies' entries row by row.
Are BlackBerry QNX and Covariant in the same country?
No. BlackBerry QNX is based in Ottawa, Canada and Covariant in Emeryville, California, United States.
Can I source from both companies?
Yes. BlackBerry QNX can be reached through qnx.com and Covariant through covariant.ai, or post one sourcing request and let both answer if they fit.
Is one of these two companies placed higher by GlobleMatch?
No. There is no pay-to-rank and no paid placement in comparisons; order and content come from verified profile facts only.
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Full profiles, with every fact and its source: BlackBerry QNX and Covariant. Profile facts last verified: BlackBerry QNX on 9 November 2026, Covariant on 6 November 2026.