From the archive
AI robotics combines perception, planning and learning with machines that act in the physical world. Follow developments in humanoid robots, autonomous systems, robotic manipulation and embodied intelligence. Our reports examine what was demonstrated, the conditions it worked under and the gap between a controlled trial and reliable deployment, with sources you can check and space to discuss the results.
Lead story
Kawasaki Heavy Industries is developing Home LEO, a quadruped social robot intended to support older adults at home, with a commercial launch targeted for fiscal 2028. The significant step is the move from care robots in facilities towards a system designed for private homes, where companionship, monitoring and…
Read the report & discussion ↗SoftBank Watch
SoftBank, Grab and Sarawak state-owned energy company PETROS have signed an agreement to explore an AI and digital infrastructure platform in Sarawak, Malaysia. The announcement is a partnership to develop a roadmap, not a commitment to build a data centre or a guarantee that a project will proceed.
World Labs Watch
World Labs, the spatial-intelligence company founded by Fei-Fei Li, has signed a definitive agreement to join AMD in a deal valued at about $8.2bn. The transaction would bring a company building AI models of the three-dimensional world into AMD, a major computing and semiconductor business.
Watch Desk
Odyssey has launched Odyssey-3, a world model it says can control robot arms, humanoids, cars and drones. The research preview’s appeal is its reach across physical tasks, though the headline results remain a mix of company claims and early demonstrations.
Watch Desk
Helm.ai says it has signed $70 million in commercial contracts over the past 12 months, spanning automotive, industrial automation and robotics. The company’s figures point to a physical-AI business reaching beyond cars, though they do not disclose individual customers or contract terms.
Watch Desk
Physical AI is moving beyond prototypes, yet customer readiness is the weakest link in its progress towards wider deployment. A survey of 4,420 technology startups found that only 26% of physical-AI builders consider their local market ready to deploy the technology, according to The AI Insider’s account of…
Watch Desk
Physical AI is attracting a surge of investment as AI moves from screens into robots, drones and industrial machines. Investor Anton Alikov argues that the opportunity comes with a less fashionable constraint: hardware, testing and factory integration move at the speed of the physical world, not a software…
Watch Desk
AI agents are moving beyond screens towards factories, power grids and other physical systems, argues Archetype AI co-founder Brandon Barbello. His case is that models able to interpret sensor data could help operators spot equipment problems before production stops, where a digital mistake can be corrected but a…
Meta AI Watch
Meta plans to bring its Muse AI assistant into a small, character-shaped wearable called Muse Charm, due for release in December in the US, Esquire reports. The device’s cute design may make an AI agent feel less like software and more like a companion, just as it is…
Watch Desk
Robots can now use vision-language-action models to handle tasks such as packing a lunchbox, but they are still likely to fail at jobs beyond their training examples. MIT Technology Review’s account explains why progress in robot AI is real, while claims of near-term general-purpose humanoids remain a much…
Watch Desk
SafeWorld has emerged from stealth with $12.2 million to build software that tests how autonomous robots behave in dangerous or unexpected situations. The company says its simulations can expose more edge cases before robots are deployed around people, though the announcement offers no independent results showing how well…
Watch Desk
A digital model helped engineers redesign a major drainage system beneath Austin, with the project’s engineering firm estimating more than $200 million in savings. The case shows how shared data and faster modelling can change infrastructure decisions, while AI’s role in the article is broader than this particular…
Watch Desk
Mecka AI has raised $60 million in a Series B led by Sequoia Capital, with Nvidia, Microsoft’s M12 and Qualcomm also backing its push to help robots understand and operate in the physical world. The funding highlights a less glamorous, rather important bottleneck in robotics: gathering enough useful…
Nous/Hermes Watch
Nous Research says it has raised a Series B to take Hermes Agent into new areas, including a planned mobile app. The funding could widen the reach of an open-source AI agent that has so far been known chiefly as software for computers and developers.
AWS AI Watch
AWS has published a framework for assessing the business value of agentic automation, arguing that time saved is only part of the return. Its practical warning: freed hours do not become financial savings unless an organisation turns them into a measurable outcome.
Watch Desk
A former AI lead on Tesla’s Optimus programme has co-founded Intelligent Machines, a San Francisco startup developing robots for skilled industrial work. The company is using reinforcement learning to teach robots complex tasks, according to The Information, and is raising a seed round that could reach about $100…
Watch Desk
Multiply Labs has raised $75 million to expand robotic systems that automate manual steps in biologics manufacturing. The company says its robots can work with existing pharmaceutical equipment, potentially helping manufacturers increase output without rebuilding their facilities.
Watch Desk
Minerva Humanoids has emerged from stealth with about $10 million in pre-seed funding to develop semi-autonomous humanoid robots for hazardous work. Its first robot, Roger, is designed to let specialists operate remotely while AI handles tasks including balance, fall recovery and navigation.
