Robotics

At first glance, it looked like a slow-motion parody of the world’s most beloved sport. On a small indoor pitch in Beijing, teams of humanoid robots wobbled across the turf, scanning the field with glowing blue eyes, tripping over their own feet, and occasionally collapsing in awkward heaps. At one point, two machines had to be stretchered off after failing to stand up again. Yet for the engineers behind the event, this wasn’t a failure – it was a breakthrough. Staged in June 2025, China’s first fully autonomous robot football match marked a milestone in the development of embodied artificial intelligence. Each of the robots, including several built on the well-known Nao platform, played without any remote control or manual input. They made their own decisions based on what they could see, hear, and compute. In short: they played football – on their own. But what the match also revealed, more clearly than ever, is just how hard it is to build a robot that can actually move like a footb...

Apptronik, a robotics company known for its AI-powered humanoid robots, has announced the launch of a new wholly owned subsidiary, Elevate Robotics Inc. The new venture will focus on developing automation solutions for heavy-duty industrial tasks that go beyond the limitations of human capabilities and the humanoid form. Apptronik’s decision to establish Elevate marks a strategic expansion beyond its flagship humanoid robot, Apollo, which represents over a decade of innovation and technological development. Since its founding, Apptronik has built more than 15 robotic systems, with Apollo serving as the company’s most advanced product to date. While Apptronik will continue its work on Apollo and other humanoid platforms, Elevate Robotics will operate independently to commercialise what the company describes as a “multipurpose automation solution” designed to revolutionise large-scale industrial labour. Jeff Cardenas, Apptronik co-founder and CEO, said: “Elevate shares Apptronik’s core, ...

Artificial intelligence (AI) and automation are rapidly reshaping global and domestic freight networks, offering the promise of enhanced resilience, agility and operational efficiency, according to the 2025   State of Logistics   report published by the US Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals (CSCMP). Compiled by Kearney, the annual report provides a snapshot of the US logistics sector and wider economy, revealing that business logistics costs in 2024 reached US$2.6tn – 8.7% of national GDP – up from US$2.3tn the previous year. Despite a return to pre-pandemic patterns in some areas, the sector experienced flat volumes, surplus truck capacity and escalating costs. E-commerce remained a strong growth driver, with global online retail sales approaching US$6.3tn, pushing innovation in last-mile delivery, warehousing agility and air freight demand. Geopolitical instability and shifting trade rules disrupted freight flows, slowed delivery times and heightened reliance o...

China’s National Development and Reform Commission plans to set up a state-backed venture capital fund focused on robotics, AI and cutting-edge innovation. The long-term fund is expected to attract nearly 1 trillion yuan (approximately $140 billion) in capital from local governments and the private sector over 20 years. This initiative aims to continue China’s technology-driven success story in manufacturing: In 10 years, the country’s global share of industrial robot installations has risen from around one-fifth to more than half of the world’s total demand. Takayuki Ito, president of the International Federation of Robotics, says: “China has succeeded in upgrading its manufacturing industry at an unprecedented pace. “Based on their national robotics strategy released in December 2021, the country has set an example of how to systematically strengthen competitiveness.” The robotics success story Chinese robot manufacturers have been able to significantly expand their domestic mark...

Exploring the convergence of advanced grippers, 3D vision, and sophisticated AI that is enabling robots to handle an ever-wider variety of items with near-human skill The relentless surge of global e-commerce has transformed our expectations for speed and convenience. But behind the one-click purchase lies a vast, complex, and physically demanding logistics network. At its heart is a critical bottleneck: the manual, often strenuous task of piece picking. For decades, the simple act of identifying a specific item from a diverse jumble in a bin, grasping it securely, and placing it in a shipping container has remained stubbornly in the human domain. Humans’ innate combination of sight, touch, and judgment has been the one ingredient that automation couldn’t replicate. Possibly until now. A new wave of robotic piece-picking systems is finally cresting. These are not the rigidly programmed, repetitive robots of the factory floor, but a sophisticated new class of machine, integrating advanc...

Team SERA, a new collaboration between the   Active and Interactive Robotics (AIR) Lab   and the   Orthopaedic Mechatronics (ORTHOtron) Lab , led by master's students Jeffrey Lee and Teresa Marotta,   Dr. Stewart McLachlin , and   Dr. Yue Hu   from the department of Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering has been established to combine the expertise of both labs for a new surgical robotics project for the international   KUKA Innovation Award 2025 - Medical Robotics Challenge 2.0 . This is the second year in a row that a team from the Department of Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering was selected as a finalist for this international competition and is once again the only North American team selected, representing both the University of Waterloo and Canada to a global audience!  Team SERA , which stands for  Surgical Environment Collaborative Assistant , was developed with the idea of creating a robust collaborative multitasking robotic a...

A team of scientists from the University of Cambridge and University College London has developed a new type of low-cost, highly durable electronic ‘skin’ that enables robots to sense and respond to their environment in a way that more closely resembles human touch. The flexible, conductive material, described as a type of ‘robotic glove’ can be moulded into complex shapes and detects a variety of physical stimuli such as pressure, temperature, and damage. Unlike many existing robotic sensors that rely on discrete components for specific types of feedback, the new skin functions as a single, multi-modal sensor, with the entire surface capable of collecting and processing sensory information. Composed of a stretchable and electrically conductive animal gelatine hydrogel, the material was cast into the shape of a human hand. Using 32 electrodes placed at the wrist, researchers were able to extract more than 1.7 million pieces of sensory data from across the hand, owing to the more than 8...

The   Italian Institute of Technology   (IIT) has reached a groundbreaking milestone in humanoid roboticsby demonstrating the first flight of iRonCub3, the world’s first jet-powered flying humanoid robot specifically designed to operate in real-world environments. The research team studied the complex aerodynamics of the artificial body and developed an advanced control model for systems composed of several interconnected parts. The overall work on iRonCub3, including real flight tests, took about two years. In the latest experiments, the robot was able to lift off the floor by approximately 50 cm while maintaining its stability. The achievement paves the way for a new generation of flying robots capable of operating in complex environments while maintaining a human-like structure. The aerodynamics and control studies have been described in a paper published today in Nature Communications Engineering, an open access journal from the Nature Portfolio. The research was carried o...

As the much-anticipated   automatica   event prepares to open its doors from June 24 to 27, 2025, in Munich, Germany, it would be interesting to ask what the state of the sector is. Automatica is one of the leading international trade fairs for intelligent automation and robotics. A biennial event founded in 2004, it serves as a barometer for the robotics and automation sector, showcasing innovations and fostering dialogue among industry leaders, researchers, and policymakers. Historical context and growth Automatica has consistently attracted significant attention from the global automation and robotics community. Looking back, the 2023 show saw a strong resurgence, drawing 41,169 visitors from 92 countries and featuring 648 exhibitors, with 35 percent of exhibitors being international. Earlier editions also demonstrated robust participation; for instance, the 2008 event hosted over 31,000 visitors from 101 countries and 868 exhibitors. While a specific forecast for numbers a...

The natural state of the world of automation is one of constant evolution. The most recent iteration has been marked by rapid advancements in artificial intelligence (AI), machine vision, and computer-powered solutions, fundamentally reshaping business processes across industries. For the engineers and operations leaders at the forefront, the challenge isn't just keeping up; it's strategically equipping themselves with the tools and insights to not only meet today's demands but to also confidently navigate the shifts in technologies and priorities yet to come. While the idea of a truly future-proof industrial computer for AI automation might be perpetually aspirational, building with adaptability and foresight is not. The ever-increasing sophistication of AI and automation workflows demands computing solutions with greater processing muscle, enhanced efficiency, and specialized capabilities. Relying on outdated hardware can quickly become a limiting factor, hindering the de...

Automated guided vehicles (AGVs) and wheeled mobile robots currently dominate factories and warehouses, following magnetic stripes or optical markers permanently embedded in warehouse flooring to navigate routes. As requirements evolve, however, wheels are simply not enough. Demand is growing for machines capable of navigating more challenging, human-centric environments, such as hospitals, restaurants, homes, and even rugged outdoor terrain. In such environments, perfectly flat floors, free from steps and stairs, along with conspicuous, clutter-free aisles, are luxuries. Instead, robots must move over thresholds, skirt around unpredictable obstacles and adapt on the fly to a world that’s neither uniform nor pre-mapped. Humanoid robots are the natural solution, literally following in our footsteps, and there are three foundational areas shaping legged and humanoid robots for such complex settings. These comprise motion control, perception/navigation, and modularity/flexibility. Togethe...