Jordan Smith, Austin-based design builder with Smith House Company, visits a startup to evaluate Taryn, a robotic system that automates the ancient practice of cob construction. Unlike conventional concrete 3D printing — which Smith has long criticized for curing inconsistencies and slow build times — Taryn works with clay, aggregate, and straw sourced directly from the site. The gantry-based robot uses cable-suspended heads, infrared depth cameras, and April tag markers to place and compact material layer by layer without formwork. Smith walks through both the material science and the mechanical design, noting the approach's low embodied energy and the structural durability of monolithic earthen walls.

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