Robotics

Robotics China

XPENG Unveils Iron Humanoid Robot, Already Operational in EV Factory

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Chris McKay• November 6, 2024 • 3 min read

The robot features over 60 joints with 200 degrees of freedom, allowing it to mimic human movements including standing, sitting, and lying down. Its hands contain 15 degrees of freedom with tactile feedback, enabling it to grasp and manipulate objects with precision.

Venture Capital Startups Robotics

Physical Intelligence Raises $400M to Build Universal AI Brain for Robots

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Chris McKay• November 4, 2024 • 2 min read

The funding represents a dramatic increase from the company's $70 million seed round raised earlier this year.

Robotics

Physical Intelligence Unveils π₀, A Foundation Model for General Robot Control

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Chris McKay• October 31, 2024 • 3 min read

π₀ builds on Google's PaliGemma, a 3-billion-parameter vision-language model (VLM), which provides the foundation for understanding visual and language inputs.

Meta Robotics

Meta is Developing a Robot Hand That Can Touch and Feel

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Chris McKay• October 31, 2024 • 4 min read

The company has introduced a range of technologies designed to elevate robotic dexterity and touch perception, including Meta Sparsh, Meta Digit 360, and Meta Digit Plexus platforms.

Boston Dynamics Robotics

Boston Dynamics Shows off Atlas Robot Doing Real-World Tasks Autonomously

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Chris McKay• October 30, 2024 • 2 min read

In the video, you can see Atlas confidently walking back and forth, stooping, and manipulating its joints with ease.

EngineAI China Robotics

EngineAI Unveils SE01, an Impressive Robot the Walks Like a Human

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Chris McKay• October 24, 2024 • 2 min read

The SE01's development team focused heavily on solving the "choppy steps" problem that has long plagued humanoid robots.

Tesla Robotics

Tesla Shows off Major Progress with Optimus Robot in New Video

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Chris McKay• October 17, 2024 • 2 min read

In the video, Optimus navigates a factory floor independently, avoiding obstacles and people with ease and even walking up stairs.

Robotics Boston Dynamics

Hyundai and Toyota Team Up to Bring Advanced AI to Boston Dynamics' Atlas Robot

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Chris McKay• October 16, 2024 • 2 min read

The immediate goal is to use Atlas for narrowly focused industrial tasks, with an eye toward broader use cases in human-robot interaction, such as elder care and household assistance.

1X Robotics

Norwegian Startup 1X Unveils AI World Model for Robot Training

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Chris McKay• September 17, 2024 • 3 min read

The world model, trained on thousands of hours of video data, can predict how environments and objects respond to robot actions.

1X Robotics

1X Unveils NEO: A Humanoid Robot for the Home

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Chris McKay• August 30, 2024 • 4 min read

What stands out most in these demonstrations is not just what NEO does, but how it does it—silently, efficiently, and with a level of dexterity that appear convincingly human-like.

China Robotics

Astribot S1 Shows off Impressive Capabilities in New Video

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Chris McKay• August 20, 2024 • 2 min read

In the video, the Astribot S1 can be seen executing a variety of tasks, from household chores to delicate manual operations. For example, it effortlessly prepares a waffle, makes kung fu tea, shoots a basketball and plays the yangqin.

China Robotics

Zhiyuan Robotics Unveils Five New Humanoid Robots, Open-Source Plans, and Outlines Technology Roadmap

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Chris McKay• August 20, 2024 • 4 min read

Zhiyuan aims to ship over 300 robots in 2024, including about 200 bipedal and 100 wheeled models. Mass production is slated to begin in October.

Robotics China

Unitree Launches Production Version of G1 Humanoid Robot

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Chris McKay• August 19, 2024 • 3 min read

This version can perform even more complex actions such as spinning, navigating stairs, bouncing, and maintaining balance when pushed or stumbled.

Figure Robotics

Figure Unveils Second-Generation Humanoid Robot

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Chris McKay• August 6, 2024 • 2 min read

Standing at 5'6" and weighing 60kg, Figure 02 is designed to operate in human environments. It can carry payloads up to 20kg and operate for 5 hours on a single charge. The robot's electric system allows it to move at speeds of up to 1.2 meters per second.

Google Gemini Robotics

Google Is Using Gemini AI to Make Robots Smarter Navigators

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Chris McKay• July 11, 2024 • 2 min read

In a new research paper, Google's DeepMind robotics team show how they are training robots to navigate and complete tasks using Gemini 1.5 Pro's long context window, marking a significant step forward for AI-assisted robots. Gemini 1.5 Pro's long context window allows

Venture Capital Startups Robotics

Skild.ai Raises $300M Series A with $1.5B Valuation

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Chris McKay• July 9, 2024 • 2 min read

Pittsburgh startup Skild.ai just secured $300 million in Series A funding, pushing its valuation to $1.5 billion. The company, founded in 2023 by ex-Carnegie Mellon professors Abhinav Gupta and Deepak Pathak, is developing what it calls a "general purpose brain" for robots. Lightspeed Venture Partners, Coatue,

Robotics Research

Living Skin Makes Robots More Human-Like

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Chris McKay• July 1, 2024 • 2 min read

To show how versatile their technique is, University of Tokyo researchers made two prototypes: a 3D facial mold fully covered in living skin, and a simple robotic face that can smile.

Robotics

Unitree Robotics Unveils Affordable G1 Humanoid Robot

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Chris McKay• May 13, 2024 • 2 min read

The demo video released by Unitree showcases the G1's extreme dexterity and versatility. It is shown performing a range of tasks, from handling delicate objects to simulating various human jobs, with impressive agility and precision.

Microsoft Robotics

Sanctuary AI and Microsoft Partner to Advance Embodied AI Research

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Chris McKay• May 1, 2024 • 1 min read

The partnership will leverage Microsoft's Azure infrastructure for AI workloads, aiming to evaluate model performance, efficiency, and planning capabilities.

Robotics China

Meet Tiangong, China's First Full-Size Electric Running Humanoid Robot

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Chris McKay• April 28, 2024 • 2 min read

It is equipped with advanced sensors, including a high-precision Inertial Measurement Unit capable of an impressive 550 trillion operations per second, 3D vision sensors, and six-axis force sensors for accurate force feedback.

Robotics China

Stardust Intelligence's Impressive S1 Robot Demo Raises Eyebrows

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Chris McKay• April 26, 2024 • 1 min read

If the claims made by Stardust Intelligence are indeed accurate, and the S1 robot's performance in the video demo is genuine, it would undoubtedly represent a significant leap forward in humanoid robotics.

Robotics

Sanctuary AI Unveils 7th Generation Phoenix Robot with Advanced AI and Hardware Upgrades

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Richard Banfield• April 26, 2024 • 1 min read

One of the most notable improvements is the robot's visual acuity and tactile sensing, which provide higher-fidelity data for training the AI control system, Carbon.

Robotics

Boston Dynamics Unveils All-Electric Atlas Robot

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Chris McKay• April 17, 2024 • 2 min read

The new Atlas ditches the hydraulic design of its predessor, and boasts a broader range of motion and increased strength.

Robotics Startups

Mentee Robotics Unveils AI-Powered Humanoid Robot for Household and Warehouse Applications

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Chris McKay• April 17, 2024 • 2 min read

Mentee Robotics describes its creation as an "AI-first" robot, setting it apart from many other players in the space.

Auto Robotics

Sanctuary AI Inks Strategic Partnership with European Car manufacturer, Magna

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Richard Banfield• April 11, 2024 • 2 min read

The partnership brings together Sanctuary AI's cutting-edge robotics technology and Magna's extensive expertise in automotive manufacturing and engineering.