Know What's Happening in Manufacturing
Know What's Happening in Manufacturing
Japan launches $6.3B push to capture 30% of global physical AI robotics market
Japan is committing roughly $6.3 billion to accelerate AI‑powered robotics, targeting a 30% share of the global physical AI market by 2040. The initiative responds to a 14‑year population decline and a shrinking workforce, positioning robots as essential for factories, warehouses and critical infrastructure.
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By the numbers: BlackRock acquires 5% stake in Samsung Heavy Industries
Signode will showcase its integrated automation and ASRS portfolio at MODEX 2026 in Atlanta, highlighting how its packaging, robotics, and material‑handling technologies work together as a connected system. The exhibit features the Octopus Prestige stretch‑wrapping machine paired with an autonomous mobile robot forklift, a collaborative palletizing cell linked to LDX‑RC case openers and LDX‑RTB sealers, and the StorFast automated storage and retrieval system. With over $2 billion in revenue and a presence in six continents, Signode aims to demonstrate end‑to‑end efficiency for food‑beverage, consumer goods, e‑commerce, and industrial manufacturers.
BLT announced that its eight‑laser BLT‑S400 powder‑bed fusion system has produced its 100,000th copper component, marking a milestone for industrial‑grade copper additive manufacturing. The machine leverages a combination of red and green lasers to overcome copper’s high reflectivity and thermal...
AI adoption in packaging is accelerating as costs drop and functionality expands, according to PMMI’s February 2026 report. Consumer packaged goods firms and equipment OEMs are moving beyond pilot projects toward plant‑wide AI orchestration, especially in machine vision, knowledge transfer,...
South Korea's HD Hyundai announced a field test of welding humanoid robots at its shipyards in partnership with U.S. startup Persona AI. The news sent the conglomerate’s shares down 9.23% on the Seoul bourse, while labor unions warned of possible...
Case Construction Equipment (Case CE) announced the GR series, a trio of motor graders ranging from 240 to 325 horsepower, marking its return to the 200‑plus hp segment. The lineup—GR925, GR930, and the flagship GR935—will be built by South Africa’s...
Caledonian Maritime Assets Limited (CMAL) has awarded Guangzhou Shipyard International in China a £200 million (~$250 million) contract to build two new freight‑flex ferries for Scotland’s Northern Isles routes. The vessels will replace the aging MV Helliar and MV Hildasay, offering faster speeds, up...
Physical AI: AI moving into Factories and Robotics. @IrenaCronin and I write this free newsletter every week. AI has been moving beyond chatbots and software tools into factories, robots, and industrial systems, where success depends on safe, reliable real-world performance. The main...
Researchers at the University of Portsmouth and the University of Manchester have engineered a “plastic‑eating” enzyme that dramatically speeds the depolymerisation of PET, the polymer used in polyester clothing. The enzyme remains highly active even at the high substrate concentrations...
Eberspaecher Vecture, a Toronto‑based developer of battery management systems, has joined Unmanned Systems Technology’s supplier ecosystem as a Silver partner. The company offers commercial‑off‑the‑shelf, custom and build‑to‑print BMS solutions for drones, robotics and autonomous vehicles, covering voltage ranges from 12 V...
The Metal 1.0, a desktop LPBF metal 3D printer, launched on Kickstarter with a price of €8,500 (~$9,840), promising low‑cost entry to metal additive manufacturing. It uses a 60 W diode laser, a small 128 × 100 mm build area (stretch version 128 × 150 mm), and offers...
Chobani is committing $567 million to expand La Colombe’s Norton Shores, Michigan plant, adding more than 200,000 square feet of production capacity. The move follows its 2023 $900 million acquisition of the specialty coffee brand and reflects a broader rollout that includes a $500 million upgrade of...
Yumari is an AI‑driven infrastructure platform that links U.S. and Canadian direct‑to‑consumer brands with manufacturers across Latin America. The startup’s proprietary models automate supplier matching, product development, quality control, customs clearance and logistics, creating a true "manufacturing‑on‑demand" experience. By digitizing...
Agentic AI is emerging as an autonomous layer for semiconductor design and manufacturing, building on decades of heuristic, machine‑learning, and generative‑AI advances. By orchestrating specialized agents across specification, microarchitecture, verification, and physical implementation, firms report up to ten‑fold acceleration of...
NOVAVACI, an Italian underwater‑cable specialist, introduced a fast, reliable identification system for steel‑wire armored cables used on research and defense vessels. The solution, displayed at stand D80 during UDT 2026 in London, lets operators instantly distinguish active cables when multiple systems...
Industrial Encoder Corporation launched the DWS1215 draw‑wire encoder system, offering precise linear position feedback up to 15 m. The device provides both incremental and absolute outputs with ±0.01 % linearity and high‑flex stainless steel wire. Targeted at printing, material handling, elevators, gantries,...
Industrial supply chains are increasingly exposed to AI‑driven cyber threats that bypass traditional perimeter defenses. Vendors, OT devices, and cloud services now intersect, creating a unified attack surface where a single compromised credential can cascade across production, logistics, and revenue...
Third‑party logistics providers (3PLs) face mounting pressure as shippers seek greater resilience, reliability and real‑time data amid rising costs, labor shortages and geopolitical volatility. Industry leaders like Ryder emphasize deep customer understanding, rapid startup execution and continuous KPI‑driven improvement to...
The United States relies on foreign sources for more than 90% of the lithium used in its batteries, exposing warehouses, manufacturers and logistics networks to geopolitical risk and price volatility. With global demand projected to quintuple by 2040, policymakers and...
Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits has expanded its partnership with Corvus Robotics, deploying more than 40 Corvus One autonomous drones across nine distribution centers nationwide. The drones have completed roughly 5,000 flights, uncovering over 35,000 inventory discrepancies and shifting cycle...
Global iron ore shipments rose 5% year‑over‑year in the first 12 weeks of 2026, driven by stronger Chinese import demand. Yet Chinese steel production slipped 4% in the same period, pushing inventories to a record 179.5 million tonnes by March 12....
Holland Shipyards Group has delivered Men Skey, the third and final offshore support vessel for Dixstone, completing a three‑ship program that began earlier in 2025. The 52‑metre, shallow‑draft OSV features a 73‑ton bollard pull, hybrid propulsion and DP0 station‑keeping, tailored for...
Portsmouth Naval Shipyard has inspected, tested, and installed the first welded additively manufactured copper‑nickel flange on the Virginia‑class submarine USS Washington, marking a historic milestone for US Navy maintenance. The component, produced via 3D printing, underwent full weld qualification and...
Augury and MaintainX announced an integration that turns Augury’s AI‑driven machine‑health insights into real‑time work orders within the MaintainX platform. The closed‑loop system automatically creates work orders when anomalies are detected, includes diagnostic context, and feeds completion data back to...
Swiss drugmaker Novartis announced a $480 million investment to expand its manufacturing and R&D footprint in China. The plan allocates about $218 million to upgrade its Beijing Changping facility, which can produce up to 3 billion tablets annually, and $262 million to expand its...
Getac unveiled CommandCore, a rugged ground control station that unifies drone, surface and ground vehicle operations for defense, public safety and utilities. The solution pairs Getac’s hardened tablets and laptops—such as the ZX80 Android tablet and S510 Windows workstation—with interchangeable...
This book explains how disruptive technologies and emerging trends such as robotics, artificial intelligence, 3D printing, precision medicine or patient design will impact the manufacturing and distribution of pharmaceuticals in order to prepare successfully for a better future of healthcare. Everything...
Agile Robots and Google DeepMind have announced a strategic research partnership to embed DeepMind's Gemini Robotics foundation models into Agile's scalable industrial hardware. The collaboration will create adaptable, reasoning robots for high‑value manufacturing tasks, leveraging a data‑driven feedback loop that...
GCL Optoelectronics secured a 1.2 MW contract from China Huaneng to supply commercial perovskite‑silicon tandem solar modules. The tender required mass‑producible, IEC‑certified modules delivering at least 26% efficiency and a 25‑year performance warranty, with delivery by June 2026. GCL is the sole...
Dexory has teamed with Multipowr to embed high‑power wireless charging into its next‑generation autonomous warehouse robots, allowing longer run times and flexible battery management. The integrated system supports a wide power range and multiple battery configurations, making it adaptable to...
Euler Motors secured a $47 million Series E round led by Lightrock, complemented by roughly $30 million in debt financing. The funding will boost product development, manufacturing capacity, and its dealer network across India. Revenue grew 12% to about $23 million in FY25 while...
U.S. Class 6‑8 electric trucks have risen 27% in price since 2020, with a sharp 40% jump between 2020‑2021, while comparable European models fell 32% and 23% respectively. The International Council on Clean Transportation attributes the U.S. increase to larger battery...
$ASML will be one of the biggest winners for the next 5-10 years Elon Musk announced that Tesla and SpaceX will build an advanced chip “Terafab” manufacturing plant increasing demand for EUV machine SK Hynix is ordering $8B of $ASML...
This Video Proves It: Shenzhen Is the World’s Robotics Hub by @Robo_Tuo #Robotics #MachineLearning #ArtificialIntelligence #Innovation #Technology https://t.co/eVaMjLTHMV
Denmark’s Celsius Tankers has secured a new order for two 180,000 m³ LNG carriers from Samsung Heavy Industries, valued at roughly KRW 770 billion ($514 million). The vessels are scheduled for delivery through September 2028, adding to Celsius’s existing portfolio of about 24...
108-Armed Cotton Picking #Robot Harvests 120× Faster Than Humans via @ZappyZappy7 #AgriTech #Robotics #Innovation #Technology #TechForGood https://t.co/TzDi7FfyrZ
Generative Design Meets Metal #3D Printing: One Click Metal’s #Drone Frame Takes Flight via @WevolverApp #3Dprinted #Technology #Innovation #EmergingTech #TechForGood https://t.co/94TJLJ6Plc
Broadcom warned that its key foundry partner TSMC is hitting production limits, creating a bottleneck for AI chip supply in 2026. The strain extends beyond semiconductors, with printed circuit board lead times expanding from six weeks to six months and...
TouchThink introduced the Z‑Series TPC14‑AIOT industrial PC, a single‑box solution that merges gateway, router, switch and data‑collector functions. Powered by a Rockchip RK3588 octa‑core CPU and a 6 TOPS NPU, it runs Android 12 out‑of‑the‑box and supports Linux, Ubuntu and HarmonyOS. The...
Lang Technik UK will unveil the RoboTrex Compact at the MACH 2026 trade show in Birmingham, marking the system’s UK debut. The compact automation cell occupies just 2 square‑metres, handles workpieces up to 95 mm and 7 kg, and incorporates a Fanuc M‑10iD‑16s robot...
Spinning #Innovation: Shanghai Team Builds Spider-Inspired #3D Printer by @lukas_m_ziegler #3Dprinted #Technology #Innovation #EmergingTech #TechForGood https://t.co/HrFAbAZf1L
If your supply chain isn’t functioning like a team, it’s fighting a civil war. Most organizations are closer to war than they think. Here’s how to fix it→ https://t.co/acbLuxh1EY #SupplyChain #SupplyChainManagement https://t.co/83xsm5n2jS
India announced the establishment of six Textile Export Facilitation Centres across key production clusters, including Surat, Karur, Ichalkaranji, Jaipur, Varanasi and Ludhiana. The initiative is part of a broader strategy to lift the country's textile exports to $100 billion by 2030....
Artis BioSolutions, a San Diego‑based advanced therapies firm, has launched a synthetic DNA manufacturing hub in Boston using Syngoi Technologies' proprietary enzymatic platform. The new site complements its GMP manufacturing facility in Watertown, creating a bi‑continental network with an existing...
Sentry Equipment, a century‑old, employee‑owned manufacturer, celebrated 40 years as an ESOP while expanding beyond traditional power‑generation equipment. The company has diversified into water and wastewater infrastructure, acquiring Rebuild‑it Services to rebuild aging treatment assets. Internally, Sentry invested in fiber‑optic...
The RAPID + TCT 2026 Healthcare Conference track highlighted how additive manufacturing (AM) is moving from theoretical potential to concrete production in medicine. Speakers covered scaling custom orthotics through standardized workflows, navigating FDA‑driven documentation via OEM collaborations, and using bioprinting to create...
NASA and the FAA released a 195‑page strategy that proposes using validated computer simulations to streamline certification of metal‑additive‑manufactured aviation parts. Developed by the CM4QC steering group of industry leaders and universities, the roadmap outlines a Simulation Maturity Level framework...
India’s Ministry of New and Renewable Energy has expanded its Approved List of Models and Manufacturers (ALMM) framework to include solar ingots and wafers, creating ALMM List‑III that will take effect on June 1, 2028. The mandate forces all qualifying solar projects...
Corbel’s AI platform tackles the knowledge bottlenecks that slow industrial 3D‑printer sales by turning dense manuals and tribal expertise into conversational answers. The system ingests PDFs, videos and sales conversations, then surfaces relevant specifications instantly for prospects. Feedback loops let...
"Petrochemical Shutdowns Spark Industry Shock, Asian Markets Plunge: Naphtha shortages force South Korea, Japan plant halts as Asian stocks crash amid supply fears" https://t.co/SZ6pwkCiSi https://t.co/se32khyggJ
Zurich-Based Startup Builds Physical #AI to Teach #Robots Human Skills by @mimicrobotics #Robotics #Engineering #ArtificialIntelligence #Innovation #Technology https://t.co/gVymMFNGjp
