Robotics
Having already revolutionized the production line, robots promise to transform our lives in myriad ways. Here you'll find the news and opinion on the latest advances in robotics and where they are taking us.
Latest News
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Shock video shows Atlas robot training for automotive work
February 05, 2024It's a shock video because Atlas is unboxing and racking shocks – sorry about that. But it's also a shock because Atlas has always been a humanoid robotics research platform, not a commercial product – and this new video has us wondering. -
Resin-slinging robot could repair gas pipelines from the inside
February 02, 2024Ordinarily, when there's a leak in an underground natural gas pipeline, the affected section of pipe has to be excavated and replaced. Soon, however, a pipe-inspecting and -repairing modular robot may make doing so unnecessary. -
Avocado robot swings from trees to gather canopy data
January 31, 2024Swiss researchers are working on an environmental monitoring robot named Avocado that's been inspired by abseiling spiders. The fruit-shaped bot uses a winch and rotors to lower itself through the canopy and gather data on life in the treetops. -
Breakthrough could see robots with ‘fingertips’ as sensitive as humans
January 29, 2024Researchers have overcome a challenge in robotics by developing a sensor that can slide over braille, accurately reading it at twice human speed. The tech could be incorporated into robot hands, providing fingertip sensitivity comparable to humans. -
Drone-deployed Mini LineFly robot crawls power lines to save birds
January 23, 2024It's a sad fact that birds are often killed when they collide with unseen overhead power lines. A new system is designed to keep that from happening, by using a drone and a robot to make those lines more visible. -
Vine-inspired FiloBot "growing" robot 3D-prints its own body
January 18, 2024When it comes to tasks like the exploration of unstructured environments, traditional robots may be stymied by obstacles such as uncrossable gaps. That's where the FiloBot comes in, as it grows like a self-supporting vine. -
Robotic insect moves across the water via world-record tech
January 18, 2024Water striders are fascinating to watch, as they scoot across the water while supported by surface tension. Scientists have now built a tiny robotic version of the insect, which utilizes a record-breaking actuator to get a move on. -
Figure's humanoid robots are about to enter the workforce at BMW
January 18, 2024Figure has signed its first commercial deal, and is sending its general-purpose humanoid robots off to start real-world work at BMW's manufacturing plant in South Carolina. Founder and CEO Brett Adcock talks us through this rubber-meets-road moment. -
Busted: Elon Musk admits new Optimus video isn't what it seems
January 15, 2024Elon Musk has Xeeted out a video of Tesla's Optimus humanoid robot folding a t-shirt – which would be great, but then followed up with a second Xeet clarifying that the video is far less impressive than it looks – after being called out by observers. -
Video: LimX humanoid robot climbs stairs that it scopes out in real time
January 11, 2024When we last heard from LimX Dynamics, the Chinese robotics firm was showing off a quadruped robot that could walk on legs or roll on wheels. The company has now released a video of its new humanoid robot, which can autonomously climb stairs. -
Housekeeping robot quickly learns a range of autonomous chores
January 08, 2024Stanford and Google DeepMind researchers have presented an open-source housekeeping robot, and trained it relatively quickly to sauté shrimp, rinse out pans, put pots away in a kitchen cabinet, and clean up wine spills – but it has greater ambitions. -
Figure's humanoid can now watch, learn and perform tasks autonomously
January 07, 2024Figure's Brett Adcock claimed a "ChatGPT moment" for humanoid robotics on the weekend. Now, we know what he means: the robot can now watch humans doing tasks, build its own understanding of how to do them, and start doing them entirely autonomously. -
Kepler Forerunner humanoid robot may be heading for a workplace near you
January 04, 2024What stands 178 cm tall (5 ft, 10 in), weighs 85 kg (187 lb) and has five-fingered hands with 12 degrees of freedom? That's right, it's the Kepler Forerunner humanoid robot, and it's set to debut next week at CES. -
Unitree enters the humanoid robot marketplace, with the bipedal H1
December 29, 2023It was just this week that we told you about Unitree's latest quadruped robot, the B2. Well, the Chinese company has also announced its first-ever humanoid bipedal robot, the Unitree H1. -
Unitree B2 quadruped robot is better, stronger and faster
December 27, 2023While Boston Dynamics may have pioneered the field of quadruped "robot dogs," Chinese company Unitree has definitely done a good job of jumping on board. Its latest industrial robot, the B2, offers some major improvements over its predecessor.
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