Apptainer: Easy Containerization for Robotics

ROS 2 is tied to specific Ubuntu versions, which limits platform choice and can introduce additional configuration complexity. In this talk, I will explain how to run ROS 2 on non-standard platforms using Apptainer, a practical alternative to Docker. I explain why Apptainer works well for robotics: it enables easy access to USB and serial devices, supports GPUs, and runs GUI programs like rviz without configuration. The talk ends with a short look at when the package manager Pixi might even let you avoid containers altogether. Being less tied to a specific Ubuntu release makes robot development more flexible.