Meta Acquires Humanoid Robot Developer Assured Robot Intelligence
Meta has completed the acquisition of Assured Robot Intelligence, a startup that builds AI models for humanoid robots. The deal, announced Friday, positions Meta to develop robots that can understand, predict and adapt to human behavior in dynamic environments. The move underscores Meta’s broader push to embed its AI across consumer products, from glasses to potential home‑assistant robots. It also pits the company against rivals like Elon Musk’s xAI‑backed Tesla bots, Amazon’s Fauna robotics, and Chinese developers.
The Humanoid Robot Market Is Smaller Than It Looks
The article argues that the humanoid robot market is far smaller than the often‑cited $20 trillion labor figure because real deployments must overcome two key burdens: dexterity and human‑proximity safety. By scoring tasks on these axes, the author shows that only...
Table Tennis Robot Defeats some of World's Best Players. Why This Has Major Implications for Robotics
Sony AI's table‑tennis robot Ace beat three of five elite players, showcasing real‑time spin detection and 20 m/s returns. The system combines event‑based vision, high‑speed cameras, and deep reinforcement learning trained in simulation to make sub‑100 ms decisions. Unlike earlier robots that...
Japan Is Building Military Drones Out of Cardboard, and They're Faster and Cheaper than You'd Expect
Japanese startup Air Kamuy is introducing the AirKamuy 150, a fixed‑wing drone built from corrugated cardboard that costs roughly $3,000 per unit—significantly cheaper than the $10,000 Lucas drone. The design folds flat, can be assembled by hand in about five minutes,...
Scaling for the Frontlines: Meeting the Department of War’s Urgent Demands
Kraus Hamdani Aerospace announced that it has scaled its production of the K1000ULE drone to meet the Department of War’s urgent demand. The company now controls the entire supply chain, from in‑house computer boards to mission‑system integration, eliminating reliance on...
RAF Regiment Counter-UAS: Defending the Airspace and Turning Threat Into Intelligence
The RAF Regiment has fielded a layered Counter‑Unmanned Aerial System (C‑UAS) capability that detects, identifies and defeats hostile drones using radar, RF and optical sensors, plus electronic and kinetic options. Systems such as ORCUS, Ninja and Rapid Sentry enable jamming,...
This $25,000 Robot Looks Right Out of Star Wars
LimX Dynamics unveiled the Tron 1, a two‑legged robot priced at $25,000 that looks like a miniature Star Wars AT‑ST. Initially shown at CES with basic pre‑programmed motions and remote control, the robot now demonstrates real‑world tasks such as guiding hotel...
Report: Humanoid Robots Represent a Premium Growth Market for Motion Controls
Interact Analysis reports that motion‑control demand tied to humanoid robots will surge, with a projected 102% compound annual growth rate from 2023 to 2029. Shipments are expected to jump to roughly 20,000 units in 2025, up from 2,000 in 2024,...
Antioch Raises $8.5 Million to Accelerate Simulation-Based Development of Autonomous Systems
Antioch, a New York‑based cloud simulation platform for robotics, closed an $8.5 million funding round led by A* and Category Ventures. The capital will accelerate its push to move autonomous‑system development from costly physical testbeds into scalable software simulations. Co‑founders—ex‑Tesla Autopilot, DeepMind,...
How Coratia Technologies Is Protecting Undersea Data Highways With Marine Robots
Coratia Technologies, an Odisha‑based deep‑tech startup, is deploying marine robots to survey and protect undersea fibre‑optic cables after recent threats in the Strait of Hormuz. The company has raised about $2.6 million and landed a roughly $8 million contract with the Indian...
Androids Break Human Record at Half Marathon
At the Beijing E‑Town Half Marathon, Honor’s humanoid robot Lightning finished the 21‑kilometer course in 50 minutes and 26 seconds, eclipsing the human world record of 57:20 set by Jacob Kiplimo. More than 100 robotic entries competed on separate tracks,...
Everest Work Delayed Again as Authorities Ban Cargo Drones
Local Nepalese authorities have abruptly revoked the license that allowed Airlift Technologies to operate cargo drones on Mount Everest, halting a service that was delivering oxygen cylinders, gear, and planned waste removal. Both the Chinese‑made DJI FlyCart 100 and the...
Washington University–Fudan University EMBA Conducts In-Depth Study Tour at Fourier
The Washington University–Fudan University EMBA program organized a study tour of Fourier, a global AI‑robotics leader, where faculty, students and alumni examined the company’s market‑driven development model and GRx series humanoid robots. Fourier’s VP Shi Hui highlighted a virtuous loop...
Robotic-Assisted Surgery Introduced in Hawke’s Bay with Royston Hospital Urology Operations
Robotic‑assisted surgery arrived in Hawke’s Bay as Royston Hospital installed Medtronic’s Hugo system, marking the region’s first use of a surgical robot. The first two procedures, robot‑assisted prostatectomies, were completed in March 2024, allowing patients to stay local instead of...
Robots Can Run a Marathon and Play Ping Pong. But Will They Ever Achieve True Sporting Greatness?
A humanoid robot recently shattered the half‑marathon world record, running faster than any human, while an AI‑powered robot defeated elite table‑tennis players with millisecond‑level reactions. Both feats highlight how robots can master high‑speed, dynamic sports through intensive simulation‑to‑real training and...
Ukraine’s Rapid Rise as an Anti-Drone Powerhouse
Within four years of Russia’s invasion, Ukraine shifted from desperate aid‑seeker to a leading exporter of battlefield‑tested anti‑drone systems and expertise. Leveraging low‑cost electronic‑warfare solutions and a rapid feedback‑driven production model, Kyiv now supplies hardware, training and advisory services to...
Japan Airlines Vs. The World: How Robotics Is Reshaping Aviation and Tourism
Japan Airlines is trialing general‑purpose humanoid robots at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport to handle baggage and cargo, with the program running through ~2028. The initiative addresses Japan’s acute labor shortage and surging tourism, marking a shift from fixed automation to adaptable, human‑like...
Eric Schmidt’s Drone Killer Is Now Protecting U.S. Troops in Germany
U.S. Army Secretary Daniel Driscoll visited Germany’s USAG Ansbach and formally signed a Merops AS‑3 Surveyor counter‑drone system, highlighting a massive procurement effort that bought 13,000 interceptors in eight days. Each Surveyor unit costs about $15,000, and the Army deployed 10,000...
US Navy Signs Deal with AI Firm for Training Underwater Drones to Detect Mines in Strait of Hormuz — $100...
The U.S. Navy has awarded a $99.7 million contract to San Francisco‑based AI startup Domino Data Lab to equip its unmanned underwater vehicles with rapid‑learning detection software. The new system will fuse side‑scan sonar and visual data, allowing mine‑hunting algorithms to...
Australia’s Speartooth Submarine Drone Enters U.S. Service
C2 Robotics has commissioned and delivered its first Speartooth Large Uncrewed Undersea Vehicle (LUUV) to the United States, marking the inaugural Australian export of the platform. The 8‑meter autonomous submarine can travel 2,000 kilometers, dive to 2,000 meters, and supports ISR and...
One Hour per Drone: KIHOMAC Takes on America’s UAV Supply Crisis
KIHOMAC unveiled the Agami, a 20‑lb fixed‑wing UAV that can be assembled from carbon‑fiber parts in under one hour, a stark contrast to 3D‑printed drones that require up to 100 hours. The platform features a "Bring Your Own Payload" open...
Trump Praised AI Drone Killer at the White House
President Donald Trump publicly praised Allen Control Systems’ Bullfrog autonomous weapon station during a White House appearance, calling it a "very special machine gun that knocks them out of the air like flies." The Austin‑based startup has tripled its facility...
Autonomous ‘BumbleB’ Shuttle Begins Campus Trials in Stuttgart Mobility Project
Bertrandt’s autonomous electric shuttle BumbleB has started real‑world trials on the Fraunhofer IZS campus in Stuttgart, linking the research site to the nearby Universität S‑Bahn station. The shuttle is part of the IZSMO project, which will also transform about 700...
Okibo NEWS: PCI Partnership Expansion
Okibo announced a national expansion of its partnership with Performance Contracting, Inc. (PCI), adding new EG7 and EG7+ autonomous drywall‑finishing robots to PCI’s fleet for high‑priority builds across the United States. The EG7+ can reach 24 feet, making it ideal for...
Meta Acquires Robot Software Startup Assured Robot Intelligence
Meta Platforms has acquired San Diego‑based Assured Robot Intelligence, a developer of AI software for robots, though financial terms were not disclosed. The move bolsters Meta’s Superintelligence Labs and its nascent humanoid‑robot program, which aims to let users control robots...
NASA to Increase Value of CLPS Contract to Support Surge of Lunar Lander Missions
NASA announced it will boost the ceiling of its Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) contract from $2.6 billion to $4.2 billion, signaling a major ramp‑up in robotic lunar lander missions. The agency aims for a cadence of roughly one landing per month,...
Meta Buys Robotics Startup to Bolster Its Humanoid AI Ambitions
Meta has acquired the humanoid robotics startup Assured Robot Intelligence (ARI) for an undisclosed sum, adding its team to the company’s Superintelligence Labs research division. ARI specializes in foundation models that enable robots to understand, predict, and adapt to human...
Just Call These Tiny Autonomous Construction Robots “Antdroids”
Harvard and IIT Madras researchers unveiled RAnts, tiny ant‑inspired robots that can collectively build and dismantle structures without any central controller. By tweaking only two parameters—cooperation strength and block‑handling rate—the swarm exhibits emergent coordination through stigmergic light signals. The study, published...
Marine Corps Fields 3,500 First-Person View Attack Drones
The U.S. Marine Corps has fielded over 3,500 first‑person view (FPV) attack drones, up from zero in October 2024. The surge follows a top‑down directive and the creation of the Marine Corps Attack Drone Team in January 2025, backed by...
Berks Students Solve Logistical Challenges With Robotics
More than 100 students in Berks County took part in the annual Sea, Air and Land Challenge, a hands‑on competition organized by the Berks County Intermediate Unit. Teams built a land rover to locate and transport simulated hazardous waste, drones...
Autonomous Drones Key to Marine Corps’ Future Logistics
The Marine Corps is building a new generation of autonomous unmanned aircraft systems to support distributed operations in contested environments. By shifting aviation assets from secure bases to rapidly moving austere sites, the service aims to complicate enemy targeting while...
DARPA Issues RFI on Embedding Intelligence Into Robotic Materials
DARPA has issued a Request for Information seeking concepts for materials that embed sensing, computation, and actuation directly into robotic structures. The agency aims to shift intelligence from centralized processors to the hardware itself, enabling faster, lower‑power, and more resilient...
INTERVIEW: Ukraine Open to Cooperating with Japan on Drones: Foreign Minister
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said Kyiv is open to cooperating with Japan on drones and unmanned systems, contingent on Japan’s readiness. Japan is considering importing Ukrainian‑made drones to boost its defence amid a shifting security posture under Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi....
How to Avoid Supply Chain Issues as Drone and Robot Production Increases Exponentially
Researchers in Chem Circularity project that commercial drone output could grow tenfold and humanoid robot production could surge up to 100 times by the late 2030s. Their analysis of 18 critical raw materials shows most will remain manageable, but rare‑earth neodymium‑praseodymium...
New Report Tracks Russia’s Growing Combat Ground Robot Fleet
StateWatch’s April 2026 report catalogued 32 Russian unmanned ground‑vehicle models, confirming combat use for at least 20 of them against Ukraine. The analysis highlights three serial‑production platforms—Kuryer, Varan and Impulse‑M—each fielded in hundreds, while the majority of their manufacturers remain free...
AVSS Collaborates with the Government of Canada Through Innovative Solutions Canada to Perform Avalanche Control Work with Drones
AVSS announced successful testing of its Precision Avalanche Management System (PAMS) in Jasper, Alberta, marking Canada’s first regulatory‑approved drone‑based avalanche control using live explosives. The trials, conducted with Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada and several federal agencies, proved the...
For Autonomous Robots, Not All Rules Are Equal
Researchers Tichakorn Wongpiromsarn, Konstantin Slutsky and Emilio Frazzoli propose a new "rulebooks" framework that lets autonomous robots rank competing goals instead of blending them into a single weighted cost function. Published in IEEE Transactions on Robotics, the system distinguishes hard...
Warehouse Automation to Hit $120 Billion by 2034
The global warehouse automation market, valued at $23.97 billion in 2024, is projected to surge to $119.79 billion by 2034, driven by a 17.5% CAGR. Growth is propelled by expanding e‑commerce, labor shortages, and rising consumer expectations for rapid delivery. Companies are...
The FAA DETER Program: A New Era of Drone Accountability
The FAA launched the Drone Expedited and Targeted Enforcement Response (DETER) program on April 16, moving from its historic “educate‑first” stance to a rapid enforcement model for first‑time drone violations. DETER issues a formal violation notice and gives operators ten...
Circus Acquires US-Israelian Kitchen Robotics
Circus SE completed an all‑cash acquisition of Kitchen Robotics for an estimated $150,000, securing full ownership of its patents, AI‑driven control algorithms, and NSF‑certified sensor systems. The deal expands Circus' intellectual‑property portfolio and gives it immediate access to U.S.‑approved autonomous...
Figure AI Ramps Up Production to One Humanoid Robot Per Hour
Figure AI has accelerated output of its Figure 03 humanoid robot from one unit per day to one per hour, delivering over 350 robots in under four months. The ramp-up leverages dedicated assembly lines, custom software across 150+ workstations, and tighter...
Altera Updates FPGA AI Suite for Edge AI Deployment
Altera has launched FPGA AI Suite 26.1.1, a major upgrade that adds a spatial‑mapping compiler to its AI software platform. The new compiler translates neural networks directly onto FPGA fabric, delivering ASIC‑like inference speed while preserving the re‑programmability of FPGAs....
Textron Awarded DIU Contract to Provide Tsunami USV to U.S. Navy
Textron Systems received a Defense Innovation Unit contract to build and deliver multiple TSUNAMI uncrewed surface vessels for the U.S. Navy’s Fleet Experimentation (FLEX) exercise in Key West, Florida, and three months of joint operations with SOUTHCOM and the Fourth...
America Plays Catch Up on Drones
The Pentagon has launched a $1.1 billion Drone Dominance Program to close a widening gap with China, which controls roughly 90% of the global commercial‑drone market. While China’s DJI can churn out millions of units, U.S. maker Skydio produces only thousands...
Bosch Begins Delivering Hardware to Kodiak as Autonomous Trucking Moves Toward Production Scale
Bosch has started shipping critical sensors and actuation components to Kodiak AI, accelerating the company’s move toward a production‑grade autonomous trucking platform. Kodiak is already testing Bosch camera samples and integrating them into its proprietary SensorPod hardware modules. The partnership,...
ABB Robotics Launches New Automated Surface Finishing Cell
ABB Robotics introduced the OmniVance Collaborative Surface Finishing Cell, its first fully automated sanding and polishing solution. The plug‑and‑play system pairs a GoFa collaborative robot with an intuitive tablet interface, eliminating the need for in‑house robotics expertise. It promises up...
Heidelberg Materials Makes Autonomy Moves
German building‑materials giant Heidelberg Materials has signed deals with California‑based Applied Intuition and AI‑driven platform Pronto to deploy autonomous haulage systems (AHS) at its quarry in Australia, with a roadmap to expand across North America. The collaboration combines Applied Intuition’s...
What Do Ukraine’s Robot Soldiers Mean for the Future of Warfare?
Ukrainian forces used an AI‑driven ground robot to capture Russian soldiers, marking the first known enemy position taken solely by unmanned platforms. President Zelenskyy reported that such robots have flown over 22,000 missions in three months and now deliver up...
Project Eternal Turns Antigravity Drones Into Time Machines
Antigravity has launched Project Eternal, leveraging its sub‑250‑gram A1 drone with a 360° camera to create immersive digital twins of heritage sites and everyday locations. The initiative partners with 3D Gaussian Splatting platform Splatica and nonprofit CyArk, offering 1,000 free...
Hypercraft Unveils Software-Defined & Autonomous UGV for Tactical Operations
Hypercraft has launched Razorback, a software‑defined autonomous unmanned ground vehicle built on a diesel‑hybrid electric powertrain that delivers up to 300 hp and a 38 kW exportable power bus. The UGV can haul a 2,400‑lb payload for 280 miles at 60 mph while providing...