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
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 and a 31% workforce cut. Declining sales, supply‑chain turbulence, and aggressive low‑cost Chinese competitors further strained the business, despite a $200 million lifeline from Carlyle. Shenzhen‑based PICEA Robotics, iRobot’s main supplier, will now steer the reorganized company while promising uninterrupted product support.
Number of the Day - $45.87 Bn
The global robotic surgical procedures market is forecast to reach $45.87 billion by 2035, driven by rising demand for minimally invasive surgeries and advances in artificial intelligence. Analysts project a compound annual growth rate of roughly 12% from 2024 through 2035....
Beyond Mimicry: Fiber-Type Artificial Muscles Outperform Biological Muscles
The December 2025 npj Robotics review highlights fiber‑type artificial muscles that now outperform natural muscle in speed, strain and stress. Torsional actuation has been recorded at over 11,000 rpm, tensile strains reach 8600 %, and isometric stresses exceed 28 MPa—more than a hundred...
Cheers to AI: ADAM Robot Bartender Makes Drinks at Vegas Golden Knights Game
Richtech Robotics has deployed ADAM, an Automated Dual‑Arm Mixologist, at the T‑Mobile Arena during Vegas Golden Knights games. The robot, powered by NVIDIA’s Isaac simulation suite and Jetson AGX Orin edge AI, was trained in virtual environments before serving drinks...
Flickstop
Recent posts titled "Flickstop" showcase the rapid evolution of robotic telesurgery, highlighting a six‑armed robot from Ottava and the SSI Mantra 3 system used for remote hernia repair. Images illustrate a medical team operating a robot and a cross‑city internet link...
Episode 137: Getting Two-Legged Robots Moving - Oluwami Dosunmu-Ogunbi
In this episode, Dr. Claire Asher interviews Assistant Professor Oluwami Dosunmu-Ogunbi about her pioneering work in bipedal robotics, covering how two‑legged robots achieve stable walking and stair‑climbing through advanced control algorithms. Oluwami explains the development of the Biped Bootcamp curriculum,...
75: A Woken Record
In this episode, hosts Kathy Campbell and Alex Cox examine the rollout of autonomous delivery robots in Chicago, exploring both the technological promise and the community backlash over sidewalk safety and accessibility. They discuss real‑world case studies—from a day in...
Ghost Robotics’ Arm Brings Manipulation to Military Quadrupeds
Ghost Robotics unveiled a six‑degree‑of‑freedom arm for its Vision 60 quadruped, turning the rugged robot into a mobile manipulator and sensor platform. The arm, engineered as a fifth leg, survives the robot’s 50 kg roll‑overs and enables tasks such as door...
How to Optimize Warehouse Space with Robotics and High-Density Automation
Warehouse space costs have surged to $8.31 per square foot, pressuring margins for e‑commerce and grocery fulfillment. Traditional static shelving and wide aisles waste valuable cubic space and limit scalability. Geek+ offers high‑density automation with AMRs and ultra‑compact storage, delivering...
Vine-Inspired Robotic Gripper Gently Lifts Heavy and Fragile Objects
MIT and Stanford engineers unveiled a vine‑inspired soft robotic gripper that inflates pneumatic tubes to snake around and gently lift objects ranging from a glass vase to a watermelon, and even a human subject in a bed. The device switches...
The Science of Human Touch, and Why It's so Hard to Replicate in Robots
Robots excel at visual perception but still struggle to replicate the nuanced human sense of touch. Human skin contains multiple mechanoreceptors that detect vibration, stretch, texture, and pressure, and our touch is an active, dynamic process. Soft‑robotics researchers are embedding...