🤖 Meta Buys the Robot Brain
Good Morning, Roboticists!
“Physical AI” mostly means every object with a motor is applying for a job.
Meta Buys the Robot Brain
TL;DR: Meta acquired Assured Robot Intelligence, a startup building AI models for humanoid robots, and will fold its team into Meta Superintelligence Labs. Co-founders Lerrel Pinto and Xiaolong Wang bring expertise in robot learning, whole-body control, and physical AI as Meta pushes deeper into humanoid hardware and robotics intelligence. Read more →
Cheap Robot Arms Matter
TL;DR: Unitree introduced a low-cost dual-arm humanoid platform starting at 26,900 yuan, or about $4,290, giving developers a cheaper route into manipulation work. The modular R1-style system comes in fixed-base and wheeled versions, with 15-31 degrees of freedom, binocular vision, voice interaction, and optional NVIDIA Jetson Orin upgrades. Read more →
Figure Wants All-Night Robots
TL;DR: Figure CEO Brett Adcock showed Humanoids Daily the company's Sunnyvale Robot Campus, where Figure 03 robots are being tested for 24/7 autonomy. The tour highlighted a Never Fall protocol, wireless foot charging, on-board Helix 02 control, and a possible $400-$600 monthly lease model for future home robots. Read more →
Brain Surgery Wants Robots
TL;DR: Neuralink introduced a specialized surgical robot designed to automate key steps in implanting its brain-computer interface. The system uses cameras, OCT scanners, and a compact multi-axis arm to handle threads finer than human hair, aiming to make future implant procedures safer, more consistent, and easier to scale. Read more →
Lawn Robots Drop the Wires
TL;DR: KEENON Robotics launched KEENMOW K1, a robotic mower that uses 3D LiDAR and AI vision instead of boundary wires, RTK base stations, or long setup work. The Kickstarter product maps lawns autonomously and targets homeowners who want robotic mowing without the installation burden that still defines much of the category. Read more →
Kitchen Robots Come West
TL;DR: SoftBank Robotics announced the U.S. debut of STEAMA and FLAMA, two autonomous cooking robots built from its Japanese FOOD DX work. The systems will appear at the National Restaurant Association Show in Chicago from May 16-19, with STEAMA cooking frozen noodle dishes by steam and FLAMA automating stir-fry preparation. Read more →
Warehouses Get Building Blocks
TL;DR: HyperLeap launched its North American logistics robotics push in Silicon Valley, unveiling HyperSort and the HyperWall Node Series. The company says its modular sorting system combines robotic picking arms, sorting robots, and put-walls that can be assembled like blocks, deployed in one to two weeks, and scaled without major warehouse redesign. Read more →
Quarry Trucks Lose Drivers
TL;DR: Applied Intuition and Heidelberg Materials are bringing autonomous haulage to quarry operations in Australia, starting at Clarence Sands. Applied Intuition will provide its Self-Driving System for Construction, designed to run directly on existing vehicles with onboard perception, decision-making, and safety systems, including smaller quarry sites with two 40-ton trucks. Read more →
Submarine Drones Cross Borders
TL;DR: Australia's C2 Robotics delivered its first Speartooth Large Uncrewed Undersea Vehicle to the United States, moving the platform from development toward operational service. The 8-meter autonomous undersea vehicle is built for long-range missions, including ISR and strike roles, and was christened in Canberra by a robotic arm with human oversight. Read more →
Greenhouses Buy the Upgrade Path
TL;DR: German agritech startup eternal.ag launched a robot-ready greenhouse Trolley that can later be upgraded into its autonomous Harvester robot. Available from May 1, the trolley uses the same omni-directional mobility platform as the Harvester, letting growers start with manual crop work while preserving full purchase credit toward future automation. Read more →
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