Poultry Processing Robotics Advances with ChicGrasp
Researchers at the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station unveiled ChicGrasp, a dual‑jaw robotic gripper that learns to grasp, lift, and hang chicken carcasses by imitating human motions. The system employs a diffusion‑policy imitation‑learning algorithm and camera perception, achieving an 81% success rate on irregular poultry. While the prototype costs about $59,000, its full cycle time of 38 seconds lags far behind a human’s three‑second pick‑and‑hang. All hardware designs, code, and datasets have been released as open‑source benchmarks for agricultural robotics.
Windracers Sets New Safety Benchmark with World-First BARS Status for Heavy-Lift Drones
Windracers, a British dual‑use heavy‑lift drone firm, has become the first heavy‑lift operator worldwide to earn Basic Aviation Risk Standard (BARS) Green status, confirming compliance with the Flight Safety Foundation’s rigorous safety criteria. The certification covers its flagship ULTRA platform,...
Eyes in the Sky: The French Drone Redefining Remote Surveillance
Boreal SAS unveiled the BOREAL ISR, a sub‑25 kg fixed‑wing drone that relies exclusively on satellite communications, freeing it from traditional radio‑frequency constraints. The platform launches via catapult, can be readied by two operators in under 30 minutes, and delivers eight hours...
Robot Hands so Sensitive They Can Grab a Potato Chip
Researchers at the University of Texas at Austin unveiled FORTE, a tactile‑sensing robotic hand that can delicately grasp items as fragile as potato chips and raspberries. The soft‑robotic fingers use 3‑D‑printed air channels to detect pressure changes, providing real‑time slip...
President Trump's Sons Tee up Their Latest Drone Deal
President Donald Trump’s sons, Donald Jr. and Eric, are backing a merger that turns the tiny Florida golf operator Aureus Greenway into Powerus Corporation, a drone manufacturer slated to trade under ticker PUSA. The deal includes a $9 million private placement at...
Roboticom Announces New Distribution and Innovation Partnership with Forged Path Automation
Roboticom announced a distribution and innovation partnership with Forged Path Automation to broaden U.S. market reach and develop turnkey process‑automation solutions. The deal leverages Roboticom’s ARPP® software, which reduces robot training from weeks to days, and its SandRob™ finishing robot...
Aurrigo International Signs £6.28m Deal to Manufacture 25 AGVs for Ultra Global
Aurrigo International has secured a £6.28 million contract to build an initial fleet of 25 autonomous guided vehicles (AGVs) for Ultra Global, with delivery targeted for September 2027. The agreement calls for modernising existing platforms, swapping lead‑acid batteries for lithium‑ion packs, upgrading...
TUM RoboGym Will Begin Robot Training Midyear
Neura Robotics and the Technical University of Munich have launched the TUM RoboGym, a 2,300 m² physical AI training centre at the Munich Airport Convergence Center. The facility will host a large fleet of humanoid robots for real‑world training starting mid‑2026. Joint...
Rhoda AI Raises $450M to Build Foundational Robotics Models that Learn From Internet Videos
Palo Alto‑based Rhoda AI announced a $450 million Series A round that lifts its valuation to $1.7 billion. The startup aims to train foundational robotics models using publicly available internet videos, a method it calls Direct Video Action. By supplementing limited robot telemetry...
Restoring Surgeons’ Sense of Touch with Robotic Fingertips
A Europe‑wide EU‑funded consortium called PALPABLE is creating a soft‑robotic fingertip that restores tactile perception for minimally invasive and robotic surgery. The device uses fibre‑optic sensors embedded in a silicone dome to translate tissue deformation into visual stiffness maps, helping...
AirData Launches Dedicated Public Safety Program for Law Enforcement, Fire, and Emergency Response Agencies Worldwide
AirData, the world’s leading drone fleet management platform, has unveiled a dedicated Public Safety Program aimed at law‑enforcement, fire and emergency response agencies across 60 regions. The service promises a guided, self‑serve onboarding that can activate an agency’s account in...
6 Best Robot Lawn Mowers That Make Yardwork Easy and Automated
The article reviews six top robot lawn mowers, highlighting categories such as best overall, best value, best multi‑season, best for large yards, most user‑friendly, and best remote control. Prices now range from $750 to $2,500, with rear‑wheel‑drive units covering flat...
Integral AI, Founded by Former Google Researchers, Targets Japan’s Robotics Industry
Integral AI, founded by former Google researchers, is developing AI models that let industrial robots learn tasks by watching demonstrations and using natural‑language commands. The startup has partnered with Japanese auto parts maker Denso since 2021 and is in talks...
U.S. Marines Operate Vector Drone During Puerto Rico Operations
U.S. Marines from the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit deployed Quantum Systems' Vector eVTOL unmanned aerial system at Camp Santiago, Puerto Rico, to support U.S. Southern Command missions against illicit trafficking. The Vector delivers real‑time, high‑resolution imagery and on‑board AI processing,...
Rethinking Customization in Warehouse Automation
Warehouse automation leaders warn that excessive customization can backfire, inflating costs, extending rollout times, and creating fragile systems. Exotec’s CEO Romain Moulin promotes a modular “Lego‑block” approach, using standardized hardware, software and robotics that can be re‑configured per facility. This...
Niantic Spatial Partners with Coco Robotics to Accelerate the Future of Autonomous Delivery
Niantic Spatial announced a strategic partnership with Coco Robotics to embed its Visual Positioning System (VPS) into Coco’s autonomous delivery fleet. The collaboration aims to overcome GPS limitations in dense urban environments by delivering centimeter‑level localization using spatial AI and...
New Collaboration Between ACS and FANUC Robotics Powers Single-Source Delivery of Facility Design and Automation Implementation
ACS announced its certification as a FANUC systems integrator, enabling the company to deliver fully integrated facility design and robotics implementation from a single source. The partnership merges ACS's engineering, controls, and construction expertise with FANUC's industrial robots, covering specification,...
XGSynBot Debuts Z1 Wheeled Robot, Targeting the "Last Mile" Of Industrial Embodied AI
XGSynBot unveiled the Z1 wheeled robot, featuring a modular quick‑change end‑effector system and proprietary high‑performance joint modules. The robot’s dual‑system central brain separates high‑level reasoning from 100 Hz real‑time motor control, enabling rapid task switching and millisecond‑level stability on factory floors....
FAULHABER BXI: Made for the Next Generation of Robotics
FAULHABER introduced the BXI, its most powerful integrated drive system yet, delivering up to 20 Nm torque within a 34 mm package. The unit combines an internal‑rotor motor, stepped planetary gearhead, and a 15‑bit absolute encoder, operating up to 50 V. Its flat...
How Emerson Applies Automation to Deliver Custom Pneumatic Valves Within 5 Days
Emerson’s Bonneville facility has digitized its entire valve‑making workflow, turning customer configurations into production‑ready CNC programs in about ten minutes and cutting manual engineering time by two to four hours. The system automatically creates 3D CAD models, machining instructions and...
Certis Partners with FieldAI to Deploy Autonomous Robots for Security Operations
Singapore security services firm Certis has struck a strategic partnership with U.S. robotics specialist FieldAI to field autonomous robots across multi‑site security operations. The collaboration blends FieldAI’s foundation‑model autonomy software with Certis’ Mozart orchestration platform, enabling robots to patrol, monitor...
How Drones Are Transforming Railway Incident Response
Network Rail has deployed drones across its East Midlands routes, enabling mobile operations managers to launch aerial inspections within minutes. Over a 90‑day trial the pilots logged more than 500 minutes of flight time, cutting incident assessment times and reducing...
SS Innovations Raises $18.6M as Surgical Robot Nears US Market
SS Innovations announced an $18.6 million private placement to accelerate its global rollout, including a U.S. launch of the SSi Mantra surgical robot. The company filed for FDA 510(k) clearance in December, with a decision expected by mid‑2026, and aims to compete...
ForwardX Marks One Year of Large-Scale AMR Operations at Chery's Dalian Factory
ForwardX Robotics celebrates one year of large‑scale autonomous mobile robot (AMR) operations at Chery's Dalian automotive plant. Over 270 fourth‑generation AMRs now run in the welding and final‑assembly workshops, handling material delivery for 32 welding parts and 95 final‑assembly parts....
Iran Fields Updated Shahed-101 Kamikaze Drone
Iran has unveiled an upgraded Shahed‑101 loitering munition featuring a front‑mounted electric motor and nose‑propeller, diverging from the family’s traditional gasoline piston engines. The redesign retains the fixed‑wing airframe and 800 km strike range while adding a rear‑mounted rocket booster for...
Ukraine Deploys Robot Battalion To Fight Russia
Ukraine has organized a dedicated battalion of uncrewed ground vehicles (UGVs) that are now armed and actively engaging Russian forces on the front lines. The robots, originally intended for logistics, carry machine guns, grenade launchers and explosive payloads, and are...
Facing the Age of Robots? Material Innovation in Architectural Structures
Robotic systems are reshaping architectural construction by moving beyond simple automation to become material makers. Advanced six‑axis arms, mobile platforms and 3D‑printing robots now translate computational designs directly into built forms, enabling complex geometries and on‑site adaptation. Projects such as...
GA-ASI Expands MQ-9B Capabilities With Long-Range Standoff Weapons & Naval Strike Roles
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI) is adapting its MQ‑9B SkyGuardian and SeaGuardian UAVs to carry next‑generation long‑range standoff weapons such as the JASSM, LRASM and Joint Strike Missile. Engineers have completed performance analytics and plan a flight‑test of at least...
Red Cat & Allen Control Systems Partner to Advance Autonomous Counter-Drone Systems
Red Cat Holdings announced a partnership with Allen Control Systems (ACS) to integrate ACS’s Bullfrog autonomous counter‑drone platform into Red Cat’s Blue Ops maritime division. The collaboration will embed Bullfrog on uncrewed surface vessels (USVs), providing precision engagement against hostile...
Teledyne Marine Signs Strategic MoU for Maritime Unmanned Systems
Teledyne Marine has signed a memorandum of understanding with UK‑based M Subs to create a strategic partnership focused on maritime autonomy and unmanned systems. The alliance will combine Teledyne’s sonar, glider and AUV platforms with M Subs’ autonomy, acoustic communications and sensor...
Ground Control & ArduPilot Demonstrate MAVLink Telemetry over Iridium Certus
Ground Control and the ArduPilot team demonstrated that MAVLink telemetry can operate reliably over Iridium Certus 100 satellite service using the RockREMOTE UAV OEM modem. Tests showed round‑trip latencies between 600 ms and 1,600 ms, keeping data flow within a sub‑2‑second window. The...
Fighting Mercenaries: A Ukrainian Soldier’s Perspective
In the Guns for Hire podcast, Ukrainian drone pilot Dimko Zhluktenko explains how his unit counters Russian Shahed drones and adapts to a war where procurement cycles run in weeks. He highlights the psychological strain of facing waves of expendable...
Qualcomm's New Arduino Ventuno Q Is an AI-Focused Computer Designed For Robotics
Qualcomm and Arduino have launched the Arduino Ventuno Q, an AI‑focused single‑board computer built for robotics and edge applications. The board is powered by Qualcomm’s Dragonwing IQ8 processor, featuring an 8‑core ARM Cortex CPU, an Adreno GPU and a Hexagon...
Drone Dominance Program Selects 11 Finalists For Potential Orders After First Gauntlet
The Pentagon’s Drone Dominance program announced the 11 companies selected for prototype orders in the first phase, known as Gauntlet I, of a two‑year effort to field hundreds of thousands of low‑cost one‑way attack drones. The finalists—ranked from Skycutter to...
DJI Mini 4 Pro, Matrice 4 Drones Can Create 3D Models Faster with This Tool
SkyeBrowse has released a major update to its Flight App, extending 3D‑mapping compatibility to DJI Mini 4 Pro, Matrice 4E/T, and Matrice 400 drones. The upgrade adds high‑performance payload support and introduces two new grid‑capture modes—Cross Grids and Side Scan—to...
Michigan Capitol Deploys Drone Traffic Platform to Monitor Skies
Michigan’s State Capitol has fully deployed Airspace Link’s AirHub Portal, a drone operations management system that provides real‑time monitoring of both unmanned and manned aircraft over the Capitol complex. The platform aggregates data from Remote ID, ADS‑B, radar, RF detectors...
WellSpan Health Launches 24/7, AI-Powered Robotic Kitchen with RoboEatz and ABB Robotics
WellSpan Health has opened “Fresh Take Eatery,” a 24/7 AI‑powered robotic kitchen at its York Hospital. The system uses RoboEatz’s Autonomous Robotic Kitchen (ARK) platform with ABB Robotics’ articulated arms, occupying just 400 sq ft. It runs four cooking modules, stores up...
Israeli Firm Confirms U.S. Order for Silent Drones
Israeli drone maker Aero‑Sentinel announced a new order from a returning U.S. customer for its low‑acoustic Aerosol G2 UAV. The system, praised for a 14.9‑decibel signature at one kilometre, will support intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) and rapid‑deployment missions. Aero‑Sentinel highlighted...
MiTwell, MediaTek, and RGo Robotics Unveil Infrastructure-Free Visual RTLS Platform to Power the Next Generation of Physical AI
MiTwell, MediaTek and RGo Robotics have launched an infrastructure‑free visual real‑time localization system (RTLS) for industrial automation. The platform combines MediaTek’s Genio 720 edge AI processor, RGo’s computer‑vision localization software, and MiTwell’s rugged industrial edge hardware. It enables forklifts, mobile robots,...
MIPS and INOVA Collaborate to Put Physical AI Into the Palm of Robotic Hands with New Reference Platform
MIPS, a GlobalFoundries subsidiary, teamed with Inova Semiconductors to unveil a reference Physical AI system‑on‑chip for robotics. The custom SoC merges MIPS Atlas RISC‑V compute, AI, and mixed‑signal IP with Inova’s APXpress high‑speed interconnect, fabricated on GlobalFoundries’ ultra‑low‑power FDX process....
Doosan Robotics to Supply Large-Scale Manufacturing Robot Solutions to Kwangjin Group
Doosan Robotics signed an MOU with Kwangjin Group to deliver more than 100 collaborative robot solutions across its domestic and overseas automotive component plants through 2027. The expanded deployment follows a pilot that reduced defect rates to zero on Kwangjin’s...
DFI to Showcase Edge AI Platforms, Powered by Intel, for Robotic Automation and Industrial Applications at Embedded World 2026
DFI will showcase its new edge AI platforms, co‑developed with Intel, at Embedded World 2026. The portfolio includes the PTH9HM COM‑HPC Mini module for defense and unmanned systems, offering real‑time 8K vision and AI inference, and the PTH171/173 Mini‑ITX motherboards...
Israeli Firm Signs Deal to Test Black Eagle 50E Drone in U.S.
Israeli UAV maker Steadicopter has signed a services agreement with U.S.-based flyAlchemy to conduct flight demonstrations and operational evaluations of its Black Eagle 50E rotary drone on American soil. The partnership will focus on payload integration, regulatory alignment, and mission‑development activities...
Gulf States Ask for Ukrainian Interceptor Drones as Patriot Stocks Dwindle
Ukrainian drone makers SkyFall and TAF Industries are fielding interceptor drones to Gulf states as U.S. Patriot missile stocks run low after intense use in the Middle East. The drones, costing a few thousand dollars each, offer a cheap alternative...
Virtual PLCs Explained: Why Manufacturers Are Revisiting Their Approach to Controllers
Virtual programmable logic controllers (PLCs) run control logic in containerized software on standard servers, offering automatic failover and reduced downtime. By moving PLC functions to a software‑defined environment, manufacturers can develop, test, and validate code virtually before commissioning, cutting time...
ABB Robotics Partners with NVIDIA to Deliver Industrial-Grade Physical AI at Scale
ABB Robotics announced the integration of NVIDIA Omniverse libraries into its RobotStudio platform, creating the RobotStudio HyperReality solution that delivers physically accurate digital twins and synthetic‑data generation. The partnership claims up to 99% simulation‑to‑real accuracy, reducing robot positioning errors to...
2nd Cavalry Tests Ground Robots for xTech Contest, Struggles with ‘Navigating’ UGV Costs
Army’s 2nd Cavalry Regiment is field‑testing more than 17 unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) under the xTech Edge Strike Ground competition. Leaders say the biggest challenge is the wide price spread, from disposable $500‑$1,000 units to million‑dollar purpose‑built platforms, which exceeds...
Qualcomm, Neura Ink Pact to Drive Next-Gen Robotics
Qualcomm has signed a long‑term partnership with Germany‑based Neura Robotics to accelerate the deployment of next‑generation robots that can safely operate alongside humans. The deal leverages Qualcomm’s edge AI computing, connectivity, and robotics platforms together with Neura’s embodied‑AI software to...
From Affordable Humanoids to Robotaxis: Pittsburgh Robotics Network Predicts the Next Wave of Physical AI
Pittsburgh’s robotics ecosystem is poised for a breakthrough in 2026 as affordable humanoid robots dip below $20,000 and robotaxi services are projected to capture more than 10% of urban transport markets. The Pittsburgh Robotics Network highlights major capital inflows—$400 million for...
Embraer Turns to AI Solution for A-29 Super Tucano CUAS Evolution
Embraer is integrating Valkyrie Aero’s Gunslinger artificial‑intelligence suite into its A‑29 Super Tucano platform to boost counter‑uncrewed aerial system (CUAS) capabilities. The AI-driven system will provide pilots with real‑time tactical decision‑making assistance during drone‑threat engagements. While the Super Tucano already...