Today's Robotics Pulse
Chinese startup Spirit AI tops global AI robot leaderboard, beating Nvidia
Spirit AI’s embodied intelligence model, Spirit v1.6, achieved a score of 1,924 on the RoboArena benchmark, surpassing Nvidia’s Cosmos3‑Nano‑Policy. The company also disclosed a ¥1.5 billion (≈$222 million) funding round to accelerate its robotics AI platform.
Also developing:
By the numbers: OneRobotics acquires Nanoleaf for $40M
Caterpillar to Showcase Next Era in Industrial AI and Autonomy at CES 2026
Caterpillar Inc. will headline CES 2026 with a keynote and a live exhibit showcasing its next‑generation industrial AI and autonomous solutions. The company will demonstrate the Cat AI Nexus on a 306 mini excavator, offering real‑time guidance, safety features, and smart fleet management. NVIDIA’s Vice President of Robotics and Edge AI will join the stage to announce an expanded collaboration, accelerating AI‑driven robotics for heavy‑equipment markets. The showcase underscores Caterpillar’s push toward connected, sustainable job sites and its 30‑year legacy in autonomy.
IntBot to Debut First-Ever Unmanned CES Booth Run by a Robot; Humanoid "Nylo" Takes the Floor Solo
IntBot will showcase its flagship humanoid, Nylo, as the sole exhibitor at CES 2026, operating an unmanned booth for the entire first day. The robot will greet visitors, initiate conversations, and answer questions without any human assistance, demonstrating real‑time social autonomy....
XELA Robotics Unlocks Enhanced Automation for Humanoid and Industrial Robots
XELA Robotics unveiled its uSkin tactile sensor suite at CES, giving humanoid and industrial robots a human‑like sense of touch. The sensors, integrated into robot hands and grippers from partners such as Wonik, Weiss and Tesollo, provide 3‑D force, shape...
Electromate Expands Mobile Robotics Offering with Maxon HEJ 90 High-Efficiency Joint
Electromate Inc. announced the launch of the maxon HEJ 90 High‑Efficiency Joint, a compact, sealed actuator for mobile and legged robots. The joint delivers up to 140 Nm (configurable to 180 Nm) torque, 86 % efficiency, and speeds up to 13 rad/s within a 110 mm × 90 mm...
CIS News
A wave of breakthroughs is reshaping robotic surgery, highlighted by Johnson & Johnson’s FDA application for its OTTAVA system and Cornerstone Robotics’ first clinical validation of fully autonomous robot‑assisted procedures. Horizon Surgical Systems demonstrated AI‑assisted cataract surgery, while industry analysts...
Flickstop
Great Robotics unveiled its NewDawn AI‑Powered Endoscopic Surgical Robot Platform, performing the world’s first public, fully autonomous ex vivo spinal surgery. The demonstration took place at the 17th Annual Congress of the Chinese Orthopaedic Association, drawing attention from surgeons and...
CES 2026: Schaeffler Shows Motion Technology Portfolio for the Industry of the Future
Schaeffler showcased its motion‑technology portfolio at CES 2026, unveiling a planetary‑gear actuator for humanoid robots, high‑performance bearings for energy generation, and autonomous material‑handling solutions. The company emphasized the integration of AI‑driven data with mechanical precision to enable predictive maintenance, digital twins,...
Duravant Completes Acquisition of Matthews Automation Solutions
Duravant completed the acquisition of Matthews Automation Solutions for a total consideration of $232.1 million, slightly above the $230 million initially announced. The Matthews unit, which generated $72 million in fiscal‑2025 sales, brings autonomous mobile robots and leading warehouse execution and control software...
Global Impact Through Robotics & AI Bootcamp in Riyadh
The Robotics & AI Bootcamp in Riyadh, held Dec 30‑31 2025 and a Hackathon on Jan 1 2026, brought together K‑12 students from multiple schools for a free, three‑day immersive program. Organized by Dr. Abdul Matheen, the event was a joint effort between Meritus AI (India)...
Seyond to Showcase Complete End-to-End LiDAR Portfolio and Mass-Production-Ready Solid-State LiDAR at CES 2026
Seyond will unveil its complete end‑to‑end LiDAR suite at CES 2026, highlighted by the Hummingbird D1 solid‑state sensor that is ready for mass production and has secured a world‑first OEM design win. The portfolio now covers ultra‑long‑range Falcon K, long‑range Robin E1X, mid‑range...
Hygienic High-Precision Robotic Solutions From Stäubli Live at IPPE 2026
Stäubli Robotics is showcasing its next‑generation, food‑grade automation at IPPE 2026, including the six‑axis TX2‑90 robot designed for humid, wash‑down environments and the ultra‑compact FL1500 electric forklift for heavy meat‑processing loads. The company will host a TECHTalk on January 29 that explores...
Video Wednesday
On November 20, 2020, Verb Robotics and Johnson & Johnson unveiled OTTAVA, a six‑armed surgical robot designed to tackle complex, minimally invasive procedures. The platform combines Verb’s modular robotics expertise with J&J’s medical device portfolio, promising greater dexterity and precision in the operating room....
MIT Engineers Design an Aerial Microrobot that Can Fly as Fast as a Bumblebee
MIT engineers have created an aerial microrobot that matches bumblebee‑level speed and agility. By pairing a model‑predictive controller with a deep‑learning policy, the robot achieved a 447% boost in speed and a 255% rise in acceleration. The AI‑driven system allowed...
From Individuals to Crews, AI Brings Teamwork Into Construction Productivity Analysis
Researchers at National Taiwan University have unveiled an AI system that automatically identifies construction activities at both individual and crew levels using ordinary site video footage. The multi‑granular framework links worker actions, crew collaborations, and overall site operations, delivering a...
Top Industrial Robots List – December 2025
RoboticMagazine.com released its Top Industrial Robots List for December 2025, ranking FANUC’s M/R‑series, ABB’s IRB 6700 and FANUC’s CRX cobot as the leading machines. The list, compiled through editorial research and AI‑weighted scoring, covers articulated, collaborative, SCARA and gantry robots from 20...
New at Mouser: Infineon Technologies PSOC Edge Machine Learning MCUs for Robotics, Industrial, and Smart Home Applications
Infineon Technologies has introduced its new PSOC™ Edge machine‑learning microcontrollers, now available through Mouser Electronics. The MCUs combine an Arm Cortex‑M55 core, an M33 coprocessor and Infineon’s NNLite accelerator, delivering always‑on, low‑power AI for smart‑home, robotics, industrial and HMI devices....
The Origami Wheel that Could Explore Lunar Caves
A KAIST research team led by Professor Dae‑Young Lee has unveiled an origami‑inspired variable‑diameter wheel that can expand from 230 mm to 500 mm without traditional hinges. The elastic metal frame and fabric tensioners allow the wheel to flex, double its size,...
CIS News
Surgical robotics is experiencing a wave of adoption and investment, highlighted by UHN’s new AI‑driven operating tower and MicroPort’s Toumai robot reaching over 100 global installations. Regulatory milestones include FDA clearances for ZAP‑Axon’s radiosurgery planner and Zimmer Biomet’s enhanced ROSA...
Flickstop
NVIDIA announced strategic collaborations with several surgical‑robot manufacturers to inject its AI‑focused GPU technology into the operating room. The partnership aims to create next‑generation platforms that can rival Intuitive Surgical’s Da Vinci system by delivering real‑time image processing and decision...
First Air Taxi Service to Launch in Dubai in 2026
Joby Aviation announced it will launch the world’s first integrated air‑taxi network in Dubai by 2026, leveraging a six‑year exclusive operating agreement with the city’s Roads and Transport Authority. The rollout includes four Skyports‑designed vertiports at Dubai International Airport, Dubai...
New Heights in Dynamic Performance: DEEP Robotics' Robots Achieve All-Weather Stable Mobility
DEEP Robotics unveiled the DR02 humanoid robot, featuring all‑weather IP66 protection and advanced motion control. The robot combines whole‑body coordinated movement, active waist stabilization, and dynamic disturbance‑rejection to deliver high‑dynamic, smooth actions. Tests show DR02 maintains balance during rapid motions...
Video Wednesday
On November 20, 2020, Verb and Johnson & Johnson unveiled OTTAVA, a six‑armed robotic platform designed for advanced medical procedures. The robot combines high‑precision articulation with integrated imaging to automate complex tasks in surgery and diagnostics. Early prototypes demonstrate simultaneous multi‑tool handling, reducing procedure...
The Science of Human Touch – and Why It’s so Hard to Replicate in Robots
Roboticists are confronting the complexity of human touch as they develop soft, sensor‑filled skins that can perceive pressure, vibration, stretch and texture. Researchers at Oxford highlight that touch is an active, distributed sense, with mechanoreceptors and embodied intelligence similar to...
RealMan Robotics Launches Next-Generation High-Power-Density Joint Modules for High-Performance Robotics
RealMan Robotics unveiled three next‑generation high‑power‑density joint modules—the ultra‑compact WHJ03, the high‑torque hollow‑core WHJ120, and the wide‑voltage WHJ48V series. Each module delivers a blend of higher torque, reduced size, and broader voltage tolerance, targeting applications from desktop manipulators to heavy‑duty...
'Stingraybot' Uses Microbubble Muscles Controlled by Ultrasound
ETH Zurich researchers unveiled a 4 cm "stingraybot" that swims by flexing silicone membranes embedded with micro‑bubbles, all controlled wirelessly via ultrasound. The micro‑bubble muscles respond within milliseconds, enabling both simple curvature and complex undulatory motions depending on bubble size distribution....
Technology that Helps Robots Read Human Intentions Could Lead to Safer, Smarter, More Trustworthy Machines
Researchers at the University of Manchester’s PRIMI project are teaching robots a rudimentary theory of mind, enabling them to infer human beliefs, preferences, and intentions. By merging motor intelligence with cognitive reasoning, the system aims to anticipate assistance needs and...
Robotics in Review: Editors Look Back at 2025
In this year‑end episode, host Steve Crowe and the Robot Report editors dissect 2025’s pivotal robotics developments, from iRobot’s Chapter 11 filing and ABB’s mobile‑robot sale to SoftBank, to a surge of over $3.5 billion poured into humanoid ventures and the rise...
Quintus Technologies and Lyric Robot Form Strategic Collaboration to Accelerate Industrialization of Solid-State Battery Production
Quintus Technologies and Guangdong Lyric Robot Automation have signed a memorandum of understanding to combine Quintus' high‑pressure isostatic press technology with Lyric's advanced automation for solid‑state battery manufacturing. The partnership will deliver joint engineering studies, proof‑of‑concept trials and system‑integration tests...
Machine Learning Helps Robots See Clearly in Total Darkness Using Infrared
University of Manchester researchers have developed a machine‑learning system that converts raw infrared data into clear, visible‑light‑like images. The technique lets robots operate in total darkness without redesigning their vision software, cutting computational load and development time. Published on arXiv...
Cyngn Partners with Chandler Automation, Expands Into Agriculture
Cyngn announced a partnership with Chandler Automation, adding the autonomous DriveMod Tugger to Chandler’s dealer network for food processors and packers. The collaboration brings self‑driving material handling to the agriculture sector, where the Tugger can move up to 12,000 lb between...
Walmart Expands Drone Delivery
Walmart has expanded its use of drone delivery in the US with tech partner Wing
Autonomous Inspection of Photovoltaic Panels
A leading European energy firm is partnering with Robotnik to pilot RB‑WATCHER, an autonomous robot for photovoltaic panel inspection. The robot combines RTK‑DGPS and SLAM to navigate both open fields and GPS‑denied corridors, capturing geolocated bispectral images. Integrated 4G/5G or...
CIS News
A wave of FDA clearances this quarter highlights rapid expansion in surgical robotics, including CMR Surgical’s Versius Plus, Medtronic’s Hugo system for urology, and Intuitive’s da Vinci SP gaining three new indications. MMI secured clearance for robotic microsurgical dissection instruments,...
Bio-Hybrid Robots Turn Food Waste Into Functional Machines
EPFL’s CREATE Lab has built bio‑hybrid robots using langoustine abdomen exoskeletons harvested from food‑waste streams. By embedding elastomer actuators and a silicone‑coated shell onto the natural shells, the team created a manipulator that lifts up to 500 g, a gripper that...
Number of the Day - $100m Private Investment
Surgical‑robot pioneer Fred Moll has committed roughly $100 million of personal capital to a portfolio of about 15 early‑stage medical‑technology companies. His investments target robots for brain, eye, gastrointestinal, cardiac and blood‑collection procedures, including stakes in XCath, Neptune Medical, ForSight Robotics,...
Introducing Chef+: Chef's Most Advanced Meal Assembly Robot Yet
Chef Robotics unveiled Chef+, its most advanced AI‑driven meal‑assembly robot, built on insights from over 80 million servings. The new system doubles ingredient pan capacity while maintaining a worker‑size footprint, cutting refill cycles and freeing floor space. Reliability upgrades include sealed...
Episode 138: Robots in the Environment - Stefano Mintchev
In this episode, Claire interviews Stefano Mintchev, an assistant professor at ETH Zürich, about his work developing bio‑inspired robots for environmental monitoring and sustainable resource management. They discuss how these robots can navigate challenging natural terrains, collect high‑resolution data, and...
At a Silicon Valley Summit, Robots Fold Laundry—And Investors Open Their Wallets
At the Humanoids Summit in Mountain View, startups showcased robots that can fold laundry, highlighting a rapid escalation of capital into humanoid robotics. Venture capital invested nearly $2.8 billion in U.S. humanoid firms in 2025, up from $42.6 million in 2020, with...
Aptiv and Vecna Robotics to Develop Next Generation Autonomous Mobile Robots
Aptiv and Vecna Robotics announced a strategic collaboration to co‑develop next‑generation autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) for warehouses and factories. The partnership merges Aptiv's PULSE™ sensor suite, machine‑learning perception, and high‑performance compute platform with Vecna's AI‑driven autonomy and CaseFlow™ workflow orchestration....
Industrial Robotics in 2025: Trends, Figures and Global Outlook
Industrial robot installations surged to 542,076 units in 2024, more than doubling the volume from a decade ago and pushing the global operational stock to roughly 4.66 million. Multipurpose, AI‑enabled robots and collaborative cobots are expanding beyond traditional manufacturing into sectors...
Skunk Works® and XTEND Expand Joint All Domain Command and Control for Advanced Mission Execution
Lockheed Martin Skunk Works and XTEND have integrated XTEND's Operating System (XOS) into the Skunk Works MDCX™ autonomy platform, creating a Multi‑Class MDCX (MC‑MDCX) workstation that lets a single operator control both large and small unmanned aircraft. The joint demo...
A Quick Look at Multirotor Drone Maneuverability
Multirotor drone maneuverability hinges on thrust‑to‑weight ratio, frame dynamics, propeller choice, motor characteristics, and control electronics. High thrust‑to‑weight ratios (up to 5:1) enable rapid attitude changes but sacrifice efficiency and flight time. Smaller, stiffer, and lighter frames reduce inertia, delivering...
Ground Robots Teaming with Soldiers in the Battlefield
Modern militaries are rapidly fielding ground robots, known as robotic combat vehicles or autonomous ground systems, to act as force multipliers for infantry units. Ukraine’s deployment of more than 150 Milrem THeMIS unmanned ground vehicles demonstrates the technology’s transition from...
Robotic Arm Successfully Learns 1,000 Manipulation Tasks in One Day
Researchers at Imperial College London introduced MT3, an imitation‑learning system that taught a Sawyer robotic arm 1,000 distinct manipulation tasks in less than 24 hours. The method uses trajectory decomposition and a retrieval‑based memory to learn from a single human demonstration...
Former Rivian Exec Says ‘Every Car Company Will Become a Robotics Company’
Former Rivian chief growth officer Jiten Behl, now a partner at Eclipse, argues that every automaker will evolve into a robotics company as AI‑driven factories replace low‑cost overseas labor. He highlighted Rivian’s strategy of spinning out startups like Also and...
Into the Omniverse: OpenUSD and NVIDIA Halos Accelerate Safety for Robotaxis, Physical AI Systems
NVIDIA announced that the OpenUSD Core Specification 1.0 is now public, establishing a unified data model for high‑fidelity simulation pipelines. Powered by this standard, Omniverse libraries deliver SimReady assets that integrate seamlessly with Isaac Sim for robot and autonomous‑vehicle testing....
AI-Powered Robotic Hands Learn Dexterity by Mimicking Human Movements and Anatomy
ETH Zurich’s Soft Robotics Lab unveiled an AI‑driven robotic hand that mimics human anatomy using artificial tendons instead of joint motors. The 21‑degree‑of‑freedom hand learns dexterous tasks through a blend of reinforcement and imitation learning powered by transformer models. Data...
UPS Buys Hundreds of Robots to Unload Trucks in Automation Push
United Parcel Service is spending $120 million to acquire 400 Pickle Robot units that can unload trucks in about two hours each. The purchase is part of UPS’s broader $9 billion automation program aimed at cutting labor costs and boosting margins. Pickle’s...
Bay Area Robotics Association Launches to Connect Capital and Industry Between Silicon Valley and the World
The Bay Area Robotics Association (BARA) launched as a member‑driven platform linking Silicon Valley robotics firms with leading ecosystems in Japan, China, and the U.S. East Coast. It brings together corporates, investors, and startups across humanoid, industrial, service and mobility...
How iRobot Lost Its Way Home
iRobot, the pioneer of consumer robotics and creator of the Roomba, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, ending a 35‑year journey from MIT lab to household staple. A $1.7 billion Amazon acquisition collapsed after EU regulators blocked the deal, triggering a leadership shake‑up...