Good Morning,

While we talk about the decline of vibe coding and the multi-year lag of productive AI agents, we are going to have to talk about real industry robotic automation systems and the potent…

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I am becoming more bullish on the intersection of AI and robotics than many others, especially those fairly critical of how LLMs are translating into real business value. Let me try to explain and summarize why. One of the reasons I’m more optimistic about the near future or robots is due to how quickly world foundational models are evolving and are likely to evolve in the 2025 to 2030 period.

• This article is going to be a premium deep dive report that’s a month by month rundown on what has occurred so far in robotics in 2025 by of Droids Newsletter.

This article is therefore an introduction for AI enthusiast who might want to know what’s going on in Robotics, Physical AI and humanoids. View our robotics section here.

What is a World Foundational Model?

World foundation models (WFMs) are neural networks that simulate real-world environments as videos and predict accurate outcomes based on text, image, or video input.

These LLMs will accelerate how robotics can learn to do tasks and work together in a variety of ways. Companies like Google, Nvidia, Meta, Physical AI and Skild AI, among others, are working on this. Everyone wants to build the “software brain” for the future of robotics.

In a short span of time, companies like Nvidia, Ai2, Google and others released their WFMs with relevance to robotics simulation.

Nvidia’s Cosmos 🌌

Earlier this week Nvidia unveiled its new world AI models, libraries, and other infrastructure for robotics developers, most notable of which is Cosmos Reason, a 7-billion-parameter “reasoning” vision language model for physical AI applications and robots.

The Omniverse libraries and Cosmos foundation models are aimed directly at speeding up robotics solutions. Cosmos WFMs, downloaded over 2 million times, let developers generate diverse data for training robots at scale using text, image and video prompts. What’s new? Nvidia’s Cosmos Transfer-2, which can accelerate synthetic data generation from 3D simulation scenes or spatial control inputs, and a distilled version of Cosmos Transfers that is more optimized for speed. Cosmos Transfer-2 is essentially a fully upgraded Cosmos world model for robots.

Ai2 Announces Breakthrough

On August 12, Ai2 launched MolmoAct, a breakthrough robotics model that brings structured reasoning into the physical world — enabling robots to understand language, plan in 3D, and act with control and transparency. Physical AI, where robotics and foundation models come together, is fast becoming a growing space with both BigTech and emerging startups.

Learn More

Who are Ai2? The Allen Institute for AI are a Seattle based non-profit AI research institute founded in 2014 by the late Paul Allen. They develop foundational AI research and innovation to deliver real-world impact through large-scale open models, data, robotics, conservation, and beyond.

MolmoAct is fully open-source, reproducible, and built to unlock safer, more adaptable embodied AI — with all weights, data, and benchmarks being released publicly. MolmoAct is truly innovative the company claims—the first model able to “think” in three dimensions! I view Ai2 as an important open-weight non-profit in the emerging tech space.

MolmoAct, based on Ai2’s open source Molmo, “thinks” in three dimensions.

Watch the Launch Video on MolmoAct

2 minutes, 45 seconds.

At a high level, MolmoAct reasons through three autoregressive stages:

1. Understanding the physical world.

2. Planning in image space.

3. Action decoding.

Ai2 classifies MolmoAct as an Action Reasoning Model, in which foundation models reason about actions within a physical, 3D space.

How is MolmoAct SOTA? 🌠

NVIDIA’s GR00T-N1-2B model was trained on 600 million samples with 1,024 H100s, while Physical Intelligence trained π0 using 900 million samples and an undisclosed number of chips.

Ai2 evaluated MolmoAct’s pre-training capabilities through SimPLER, a benchmark containing a set of simulated test environments for common real robot manipulation setups. MolmoAct achieved a state-of-the-art (SOTA) out-of-distribution task success rate of 72.1%, beating models from Physical Intelligence, Google, Microsoft, NVIDIA, and others.

• Reasoning-first: Goes beyond end-to-end task execution to explain how and why actions are taken

• Language to action: Translates natural commands into spatially grounded behavior

• Transparent + safe: Users can preview and steer robot plans before they act

• Efficient + open: Trained on 18M samples in ~24 hours; outperforming larger models (71.9% on SimPLER)

A New Class of Model: Action Reasoning

According to Ai2 - MolmoAct - is the first in a new category of AI model that we can refer to as an Action Reasoning Model (ARM), a model that interprets high-level natural language instructions and reasons through a sequence of physical actions to carry them out in the real world.

What this suggests to me is WFMs will enable new capabilities in speeding up robotics training that enables general purpose robots faster than anticipated.

🤖 Articles on Robotics and Humanoid Robotics

(see Section) For deep reports and journalism on robotics, check out .

• The Robots are coming: Genesis

• Global Robotics Landscape 2025

• How General purpose robots are coming

• Chinese EV Makers' Foray into AI: Redefining the Future of Mobility

Learn more about Robots

DROIDS!

Riveting dispatches from the front lines of robotics.

By Diana Wolf Torres

Google’s Genie 3: A new frontier for world models 🧞‍♀️

Around a week ago, Google released Genie 3. While WFMs remain limited in 2025, Genie 3 offers improvements like real-time interaction and better memory.

“Genie 3 is the first real-time interactive general-purpose world model,” Shlomi Fruchter, a research director at DeepMind

Meta Superintelligence Lab 💎

In June, 2025 before Meta went on its legendary 2025 poaching spree of AI talent, they had unveiled a new AI model called V-JEPA 2 that it said can better understand the physical world.

Read on V-JEPA

I believe Meta’s new Meta Superintelligence Lab could further accelerate how WFMs evolve to assist the development of consumer robotics and robotics training not foreseen for decades more or less taking place on an earlier timeline in the late 2020s and 2030s.

You might also remember in September last year, leading AI researcher Fei-Fei Li raised $230 million for a new startup called World Labs, which aims to create what it calls “large world models” that can better understand the structure of the physical world. So if GPT-5 is proof of a scaling bottleneck for general purpose LLMs, now we can fine-tune WFMs for robotics in greater focus.

Companies to Watch 🐉

• Nvidia

• Physical Intelligence

• World Labs

• Thinking Machine Labs (who are building open-weight models)

• Skild AI

• Apple (developing consumer robotics)

• Meta Superintelligence Lab

• Google DeepMind

• Figure AI

• Ai2

• Unitree Robotics

• Tesla Optimus Robotics

• Amazon

Consumer robotics will also be fairly interesting to watch in terms of the China vs. United States dynamic, given how aggressive China’s EV startups have been vs. American innovation.

• Some analysts see Humanoid robotics as a $5 to $7 Trillion opportunity in the near future (e.g. the next 25 years).

A 25 Year Explosion of Robots in Human Civilization

Read the Report

• Generative AI’s impact on robotics may have been underestimated in 2023 and before and we’re finding out it’s more impactful with WFMs and other techniques.

• AI moving in a direction AI recursive self improvement (ARSI) may also accelerate adapting robots to the real world in the late 2020s in a “GPT moment for Robotics” I’m anticipating around 2027. We are already starting to see this in 2025 in the domain of AI coding.

⚓︎ From the Robot Lighthouse 🌊

Here is a list of articles I found useful for context on the robotics industry in my general reading on the topic:

• Robots can program each other's brains with AI, scientist shows:

Read Paper

• Allen Institute for AI bolsters robotics leadership: UW prof Dieter Fox leaves Nvidia to lead robotics initiative at Allen Institute for AI

• OpenMind wants to be the Android operating system of humanoid robots. OpenMind is building a software layer, OM1, for humanoid robots that acts as an operating system.

• Amazon-backed Skild AI unveils general-purpose AI model for multi-purpose robots.

• New vision-based system teaches machines to understand their bodies via MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL). Read paper

Read Paper

• Augmentus raises Series A+ funding to reduce robot programming complexity

• Hexagon launches AEON humanoid robot for industrial applications

• Agility Robotics, Boston Dynamics see leadership changes. Aaron Saunders, chief technology officer at Boston Dynamics, announced on LinkedIn that he is stepping down from that role. And Melonee Wise, chief product officer at Agility Robotics, is leaving the company at the end of the month.

• Domino's deploys Boston Dynamics' robot dog to deliver pizza and fend off seagulls on beaches. 🌴

• Google says its new ‘world model’ could train AI robots in virtual warehouses.

• AI-powered exoskeletons are helping paralyzed patients walk again.

• Humanoid robot swaps its own battery to work 24/7 via UBTech: Instead of shutting down to recharge, the Walker S2 walks to a nearby swap station. When one battery starts to run low, the robot turns its torso, uses built-in tools on its arms and removes the drained battery.

Let’s get into our deep dive mid-2025 Robotics report:

The Year the Robots got up and Walked Out

A Mid-Year Chronicle of Humanoid Revolution

• Check out the notes of Diana Wolf our lead robotics reporter.

Get Full Access

Ai2’s advances basically open-source continued WFM developments that help train robots in real-world tasks better and faster. Nvidia and all the companies I’ve mentioned are a big part of this too.

• This article is a great primer on all that has occured in robotics news so far in the first half of 2025.

Read more

⚪ To cap off a pretty eventful week in AI & emerging tech: if you know other robot enthusiasts you might want to share this with them.

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“What kind of a world will we be living in when robots and humanoid robotics go mainstream?”

Two of my favorite voices in humanoid robotics coverage have to be , along with in Physical AI . They sometimes cover robotics and physical AI on this pub.

Headlines in Robotics:

As AI continues to evolve and the mass production of humanoid robots begins, I suspect I’ll be covering robotics increasingly on this publication. This future AI takes many aspects and with all the emphasis on LLMs, the impact of robots might be underestimated in the mid 2020s.

🔵 Industry news I noticed recently:

• Amazon will begin to test humanoid robots in delivery.

• Meta’s new V-JEPA 2 world model uses raw video to train robots. [read paper]

• How Boston Dynamics Atlas humanoid robot now handles drops, stumbles, and unexpected failures.

• AI robots help nurses beat burnout and transform hospital care. (Nurabot, developed by Foxconn and Kawasaki Heavy Industries with Nvidia)

• The Head of Tesla’s Optimus Program Just Resigned. Farewell Milan Kovac. Bloomberg reports that Autopilot chief Ashok Elluswamy will take over responsibility for Optimus, which is at a critical stage.

• Figure AI unveils BotQ high-volume humanoid manufacturing facility (April). Figure AI said this Spring that BotQ’s first-generation production line will be capable of manufacturing up to 12,000 robots per year.

Robotics Macro Articles

🟢 Context and insights into the Macro robotics wave that is coming: (by Diana on this publication already):

1. The Robots are coming: Genesis

2. How General purpose robots are coming

3. Global Robotics Landscape 2025

💡 What is this article about?

This article explores what really happens when humans work alongside robots—and the psychology behind making it successful. Drawing from verified studies at Case Western Reserve University, BMW's real manufacturing trials, and European workplace research, it reveals the specific factors that lead to 50% productivity boosts versus complete implementation failures.

With quotes from industry leaders and all statistics properly sourced, it's a data-driven look at the human side of automation that your readers will find both fascinating and immediately useful for understanding our robotic future.

Author’s Newsletter:

• Please support investigate journalists and robot enthusiasts.

Deep Learning With The Wolf

I'm a freelance writer who loves to research A.I. and share what I've learned.

By Diana Wolf Torres

• Physical AI: The Next Evolution in Machine Intelligence

• 🏥 The Robotic Rounds Begin

• Digit Gets Smarter: How Agility Robotics Is Leveling Up with NVIDIA

How will people and robots work together in the future of manufacturing, warehouses, logistics, retail, construction and so forth? 🤔

The Human Side of Automation: Psychology in the Age of Collaborative Robots

Read more

Welcome Back,

To understand and track the future of AI, we’ll need to keep an eye on China.

One of the big questions I’ve had in the past few months is how can China’s lead of EV makers translate to a very competitive group of humanoid robotics makers and startups pushing the future of mobility. Could some of their avant-garde “flying cars” contribute to the future of mobility? What will China’s EV makers become in 5-10 years?

Chinese EV makers aren’t just car makers, they are innovation hubs. Today we’ll explore many examples of this.

• I asked and to look into this complicated situation pre 2025 China trade war.

• Grace Shao is an independent researcher who writes about AI, Physical AI, and AI infrastructure on Substack at AI Proem.

• Diana Wolf Torres transforms complex AI technology concepts into clear, compelling narratives that resonate with broad audiences. As the founder of Deep Learning with the Wolf and a veteran technology communicator with over two decades of experience.

In this article we’ll delve into China’s EV makers, physical AI, the future of mobility and everything from smart homes to robotics in China. We’ll take a look at the R&D inside of China’s EV makers taking a holistic snapshot.

BYD vs. Tesla update April, 2025

🌍 China’s BYD has a lot more momentum than Tesla in the EV race in recent months:

• Earlier this month (April, 2025) Tesla reported a 20% drop in auto revenue with Net income plummeting 71%.

• A few days ago, BYD reported operating revenues that have jumped 37% year-over-year to 170.4 billion yuan, or roughly $23.3 billion.

• In late 2024 we learned that BYD was conducting a new mass recruitment drive for robotics talent to staff its embodied intelligence (EI) unit.

Keep in this in your mind as we proceed in this very well researched deep dive. Also read the deep dive did with us about BYD.

🔮 Recent articles on AI Proem

We often have Grace talk to us about China Tech and China AI and its various ramifications, including physical AI.

1. [Audio+Video] The Big Technology Podcast: China's AI Strategy (🎬 YouTube Here)

2. AI Arms Race Far From Over: Chips is Only Half the Game, Infrastructure is the Other

3. Behind the AI Arms Race: U.S. vs. China Cloud Computing

Subscribe to AI Proem

🤖 Diana Wolf Articles

Diana is our lead robotics reporter:

1. The Robots are coming: Genesis

2. Global Robotics Landscape 2025

3. Reflections from GTC 2025: Robots, Recovery, and the Road Ahead

There are so many EV makers, EV battery leaders and EV borderline robotics makers in China already in 2025. A recent event where various Chinese humanoid robots participated in a half-marathon in Beijing that surprised some analysts.

China’s EV makers are poised not only to increase global sales in 2025 and take marketshare from Tesla and others amid Elon Musk boycotts and problematic reciprocal trade tariffs by the Trump Administration but build new capabilities the car makers in the U.S., South Korea or Japan are not known for.

China’s Variety of EV makers means a pivot to Robots is in the Cards

⚡ China’s EV Makers are Evolving

Here are some names to watch:

• BYD

• Geely

• Xiaomi (SU7 pictured above).

• Xpeng

• SAIC-GM-Wuling

• Li Auto

• Zeekr

• Nio + so many others (we’ll be covering many of these below).

Alibaba backed Xpeng have been Working on Flying Cars for Years via Xpeng AeroHT, an affiliate of Xpeng.

Subscribe now

Now that you are orientated, let’s get into the deep dive that’s nearly 4,000 words.

Chinese EV Makers' Foray into AI: Redefining the Future of Mobility

Who are the major players, why have they become market leaders, and how do we move forward together as a society?

By Diana Wolf Torres, Grace Shao (Early, 2025)

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The Chinese electric vehicle (EV) market is no longer just about battery power and range. Leading players like Li Auto, XPeng, Nio, BYD, and Zeekr are increasingly incorporating artificial intelligence (AI) into their vehicles and overall business strategies, effectively repositioning themselves as AI-driven companies. This shift is driven by the growing demand for intelligent features, the rapid advancements in AI technology, and the ambition to lead the future of mobility.

After a slow start to the year of the Snake, they all gave consumers incentives to convert and commit. But things changed with DeepSeek’s R1 release. All of a sudden, China seemed “investible” again after a long hiatus. International and domestic confidence was boosted by China's clear innovation and the founder’s largely optimistic and idealist views of focusing on innovation over commercialization, rallying young talents to keep believing in the process.

In fact, according to Rest of World’s reporting, more than 20 Chinese automobile brands have announced plans to embed DeepSeek models, supercharging the AI transition. Much of the adoption remains on the consumer-facing end, such as improving existing AI features, including voice control, high-precision mapping, and smartphone-like access to music, web search, and messaging services.

The Chinese EV industry will benefit as DeepSeek elevates the consumer experience of its products, making its cars even more attractive globally. China is already competitive in the EV manufacturing chain, including the production of lithium batteries and robotics, Grace Shao, founder of AI-industry newsletter AI Proem, told Rest of World.

“Chinese EV market leaders have all their ducks in a row, and now DeepSeek is accessible to them, perfectly positioning them to excel as the various components come together along the supply chain,” Shao said.

Why Have Chinese EVs Done Well?

Let’s first take a step back. China's dominance in smart electric vehicles has taken two decades of innovation and reiteration. It isn't merely a story of manufacturing prowess (which sometimes people like to point fingers at) but rather a strategic government-encouraged technological coup years in the making.

The world's second-largest economy has masterfully leveraged its unique advantages: a vast network of industrial clusters that can source any component within hours, control critical raw materials like lithium and rare earth elements, and an unmatched charging infrastructure network of over 10.2 million stations. But before that, China has also rolled out various top-down policies to encourage the development of lithium batteries, lidar sensors technology, robotics, push for electrification of things, and mandate the transition to greener energy solutions. All of that is on top of the founding of domestic OEM makers. With years of experience producing automobiles under the JV brands of leading European carmakers such as Audi, Mercedes, and so on, a generation of car designers, makers, and engineers were trained. With lowered costs, Chinese OEMs such as SAIC, BAIC Dongfeng, and Changan dominated the lower price range of cars for middle-class households. Grace has written an analysis of the impact of governmental support and “real economy” innovation that have propelled China’s EV and robotic sector here.

This ecosystem has enabled Chinese automakers to iterate new models at breakneck speed—every 1.3 years compared to traditional automakers' four-year cycles—while maintaining tight control over costs and innovation. These moving parts laid the foundation for a nutrient-rich environment for Chinese smart EVs to grow in their initial stages.

What truly sets Chinese EVs apart is their evolution beyond simple transportation into sophisticated mobile computing platforms. In a fiercely competitive market and a mobile-native user demographic, companies have been forced to cater to tech-savvy Chinese consumers who demand advanced features like autonomous driving and "smart" cockpits.

These smart cockpits are integrated systems that combine cutting-edge digital displays, AI-powered controls, and advanced connectivity features to enhance the driving experience and safety. This pressure, combined with substantial government support and cross-industry collaboration between tech giants, automakers, and research institutions, has created a perfect storm of innovation.

The result is a new generation of vehicles that seamlessly integrate artificial intelligence, entertainment systems, and transportation functionality—making Chinese EVs not just cars but rolling smartphones that have left traditional automakers scrambling to catch up.

Geopolitical Complications

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Good Morning,

Today we continue our robotics series, a new section at the top of our publication’s website. There’s a lot to cover. Please click on the links for more information. This is the sort of

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Good Morning,

It’s impossible to talk about AI without witnessing and exploring its physical manifestation in the world. This will be more true in the 2030s I suspect, than the 2020s, but we are starting to see nascent signs of new kinds of hardware and software possibilities and a synergy with machine learning & world models using synthetic data.

• If you use the Substack app or on desktop, follow this publication on Notes. I enjoy sharing robotics news and videos of recent prototypes and demos.

So how does AI get a body, and why does it matter to civilization? I am of course referring to robotics, sometimes also termed Physical AI. Humanoids is the term to denote bipedal robots that are meant to interact with people at work and later, in the home. These robots will change society in potentially a more tangible way than Generative AI chatbots have in recent times. These are the wonder-years of embodied AI.

🌊 “If you read only one report or article on Robotics in 2025, this would be a good one to catch to get fully up to date on the innovations taking place in the space.”

I’m not just an AI enthusiast, I’m an emerging tech analyst. Like I had predicted, 2025 is shaping up to be an important year for the emergence of robotics and humanoid robots in particular. and her focus group are looking into Generative AI and Robotics for me and how this trend is continuing in 2025. is covering Physical AI and covered robotics companies like Unitree, more on the East Asia side. China is incredible in robotics which we will get more into in a future article.

• 🤖 Apptronik recently raised $350 million, highlighting the ongoing interest in humanoid robot technologies.

• 🍎 Apple and Meta are now getting into the robotics market more seriously as I covered in my Newsletter, OK Robot recently.

OK, Robot

OK, Robot

A Newsletter about the present and future of robotics, startups, applications and emerging technology.

By Michael Spencer

In 2025, Apple is actively exploring the development of humanoid and non-humanoid robots as part of its future technology initiatives, particularly aimed at enhancing smart home applications. Amazon is on the cusp of doing so as well including pioneering E-commerce warehouse automation with companies like JD.com, which started to do so all the way back in 2014.

Nvidia’s Earnings this week and upcoming GTC event on March 17th, will also signal new advances in robotics, follow Jim Fan for specific details. As AI startups and frontier model makers race to anthropomorphize chatbots and AI agents, humanoids that do the same could be lucrative consumer home devices as their prices begin to decline, and their capabilities begin to grow and their use cases to automate tasks and save us time begins to multiply.

Our guest writer today Diana writes the Newsletter, Deep Learning with the Wolf, and is increasing getting into robotics and emerging tech coverage.

Today’s Article Summary (Global report on Robotics)

• Diana is one of my favorite journalists and freelancers really knowledgeable about robots.

Deep Learning with the Wolf

Deep Learning With The Wolf

I'm a freelance writer who loves to research A.I. and share what I've learned.

By Diana Wolf Torres

According to Bloomberg, Meta wants to get into AI, sensors, and software for humanoid robots realizing the opportunity. After spending nearly $100 Billion in recent years on AR/VR tech, I suppose Meta’s Reality Labs division needs to do something useful for Enterprise AI revenue and ambitions.

Gamma Neo by 1X

Four days ago, 1X introduced their NEO Gamma humanoid robot. 1X is a Norwegian robotics startup.

• NEO Gamma can walk naturally, pick up objects, and interact using body language and conversation.

• 1X sees real-world home testing as crucial for developing intelligent, adaptable humanoids.

• The company is racing against competitors like Figure, Tesla, and Agility, which have prioritized industrial applications. I like the “soft aesthetics” of NEO Gamma that feels less intrusive.

It’s hard for me to visualize what kind of a humanoid robot I’d want in my home, but thankfully the prototypes all sort of look a little different from each other in 2025. But they will soon be able to do much more as their models and capabilities improve.

Leave a comment

The explosion of funding and innovation in robotics is something akin to a 'ChatGPT' Robotics Moment in 2025 where we may in the coming years so an inflection point for humanoid robotics. We should hit this by 2027 or the late 2020s in my view.

There are many names in the field that you might not have heard of yet. Field AI, a robotics startup supported by Nvidia, is currently in discussions to raise funds that could potentially increase its valuation to $2 billion. We are however so absurdly early in the field of robotics, even on the stock market there aren’t yet that many good names to invest in. Surgical robotics companies certainly seem to be early in the game, if investing in emerging tech is your thing.

Robotics Startups are Building their own Models

Overview of Helix

Recently Figure AI released Helix. Helix is a groundbreaking generalist Vision-Language-Action (VLA) model aimed at enhancing the capabilities of humanoid robots. This innovative model integrates perception, language understanding, and learned control, allowing robots to perform various tasks with greater efficiency and adaptability.

Figure built Helix, a generalist Vision-Language-Action (VLA) model, entirely in-house and end-to-end. Their videos are worth checking out.

Read more on Helix

China continues to rapidly experiment with greater mobility in robots, even as the West continues to fund lucrative humanoid robotics startups with global ambitions. China’s cost advantages in manufacturing robots gives them a huge advantage. Meanwhile, Nvidia seems to be developing important capabilities to spur robots to the next level of utility.

The last article in our robotics series was very well received:

Genesis and Robotics Leaders

Diana’s last report on this Newsletter was one of the most widely read pieces on Substack in robotics in recent months:

Read the First Robotics Report

AI Supremacy

The Robots are coming: Genesis

AI Supremacy is giving out 3-month free complimentary paid subscriptions to our top sharers and restackers every two weeks. The cost of a paid subscription is less than $2 a week but to make it more affordable for my 🌎 international readers, consider sharing: 🙏 🇮🇳, 🇳🇬, 🇵🇰, 🇵🇭, 🇧🇷, 🇮🇩, 🇲🇽, 🇹🇼, 🇮🇷, 🇧🇷, 🇪🇬, 🇲🇽, 🇨🇴 + 🤗…

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a year ago · 100 likes · 4 comments · Michael Spencer and Diana Wolf Torres

What about Robotics by Country?

Today we continue this survey with global perspectives. When we talk about future leaders and companies that don’t yet exist, the leading robotics companies of tomorrow could be one day more lucrative than OpenAI or Anthropic. OpenAI have flirted with robotics as well, but are more likely to acquire a leading startup than build anything in-house that will be competitive.

With Apple and Meta getting robot curious, Tesla and leading robotics startups may be catalyst for a new hype boom in Humanoid general purpose robots, the holy grail of robotics.

What will the world look like when humanoid robots are more common and as their AI capabilities keep improving at a rapid rate?

Autonomous Ship Building 🚢

I also have to mention eight days ago, Saronic raised $600 million to build AI automated ships - autonomous shipbuilding. Saronic Technologies announced that it has closed a Series C round of $600 million, bringing its valuation to $4 billion. The company said its valuation quadrupled in the seven months since it attained “unicorn” status in July 2024.

The U.S. is striving to catch up to China in autonomous surface vessels. The drone, military robot and Anduril’s efforts are also part of the robotics umbrella in the increasing automation of the military. America’s armed forces are going to look different soon. National security competition also plays a not insignificant role in spurring robotics innovation.

🌎 Global Robotics Landscape 2025

• In this report, will break down initiatives by region and country in robotics.

• She outlines how cultural perspectives influence how we are building these humanoids.

• She explore the regional differences in innovation around robotics and who some of the leaders are.

• Diana introduces the national characteristics of robotics innovation by country in a holistic way that I’ve frankly never seen before! Different countries need robots to solve different sorts of social problems unique to their region and aligned with their cultural values.

• Learn about humanoid robots in China, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, U.K., Israel, France, Netherlands, USA, etc..

Support independent authors who uncover glimpses of AI that the mainstream media cannot or will not, explore.

⚪ I’m on a quest to feature the best emerging writers in AI on this publication.

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💡 Check out the Newsletter at ai-supremacy.com to get full access for less than $2 a week.

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The so-called ‘ChatGPT’ moment in robotics is nearly here roughly occuring in the 2025-2030 period. New training capabilities due to world models with innovations like Nvidia’s Cosmos and the collaboration like Genesis open up faster training capabilities using synthetic data that translates well for training robots and physical AI software that translates well to the real world.

This ChatGPT moment for robotics is enabled by a few trends:

• Improvements in the fine-motor control of the hands (arms) of general purpose Humanoid robotics

• Improvements in the agility of robots (e.g. Unitree, Boston Dynamics)

• Better world models for synthetic data training environments

• More funding for robotics, AI drones and national defense use cases

• Emergence of fast-learning robots due to physical AI advances

You can read our latest report that goes into some more detail:

Read Report

Manufacturing

Since CES 2025, there’s been evidence of this acceleration in robotics, mostly occurring in China. What’s clear is robots are also powering manufacturing more and more.

In January 2024, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that U.S. manufacturers had more than 600,000 vacancies.

ABI Research last week predicted that the global installed base of commercial and industrial robots could reach 16.3 million in 2030 as manufacturers attempt to offset the baby boomer exodus.

For every 10,000 employees, the number of manufacturing robots is highest in countries like 🇰🇷 South Korea, 🇸🇬 Singapore, 🇩🇪 Germany, 🇯🇵 Japan, 🇨🇳 China and so forth. Outside of Germany and Sweden, the U.S. and the West lags behind. The global average for the ratio of industrial robots to employees was 151 in 2023, according to the International Federation of Robotics. This number is only going to increase and one day, drastically. The year it increases the most and the fastest, is officially when the ChatGPT moment for robotics has arrived.

Consolidation & Warehouse Automation

This month also Symbotic said that it will acquire Walmart Inc.’s Advanced Systems and Robotics business for $200 million. Symbotic will construct and implement an advanced solution powered by its AI and robotics platform. Symbotic will spearhead a development programme financed by Walmart, which is designed to refine existing online order fulfilment systems and engineer novel solutions tailored to meet the evolving demands of current and prospective customers. If all goes well, Walmart will pay Symbotic $520m, including an upfront payment of $230m upon closing.

Founded in 2007, Symbotic has developed robots, software, and artificial intelligence serving retail, wholesale, and food and beverage companies. The stock is one of the best pure play robotics companies on the public market in my opinion as the company approaches a valuation of nearly $20 Billion.

However the real story in robotics in this period are humanoid robots and what Chinese robotic startups are doing. OpenAI is also hiring for roles to kickstart their robotics program. While Nvidia has been involved in emerging tech like AVs, Quantum computing and robotics Physical AI environments for a while, I believe the future of robotics is by far the biggest and nearest play.

The AI arms race between the U.S. and China isn’t just about LLM but AI-controlled robots. With China’s vastly superior manufacturing capabilities and efficiency, it will be difficult for the U.S. to truly innovate ahead of them, if the EV market was anything to go by.

Unitree’s G1 starts at $16,000 US, not a price point Figure or Tesla will be able to match anytime soon. Time permitting I cover robot news on OK, Robot.

G1 humanoid robot and the Spot-like Go2 robot dog both were featured prominently at CES 2025. Along with several stunt videos displaying their impressive feats of agility. When Nvidia announced Cosmos, they hinted that Nvidia improved world models for robotics training will usher in a “ChatGPT moment” for robotics and it will happen in the second half of the 2020s. Compared to Generative AI’s historical timeline, we are at about 2018 for robotics.

a writer and researcher based in Hong Kong is well positioned to dig deep into this trend of Chinese roboti makers. Her Newsletter AI Proem, is one of the fastest growing debut Newsletters around AI, Geopolitics, Datacenters and innovation and a leading source on AI infrastructure in China and deep dives on Chinese tech companies and startups.

• Physical AI’s ChatGPT “moment”: A Closer Look at Embodied AI Robots

• China's 'Eastern Data and Western Computing': State Policies and Affordable Energy Solutions Push AI Infrastructure Ahead

Drones and Robots for National Defense

China is so far ahead in drone manufacturing now there is a push to weaponize robots for national defense in both the U.S. and China. Anduril’s Arsenal-1 hyperscale plant in Ohio and Palantir’s $200 million funding of drone-startup Shield AI signals a new era.

Watch the Interview

Onlookers have noticed that Unitree’s robots appear even more agile than Hyundai owned Boston Dynamics that look bulky in comparison. You are indeed not imagining things. The full extent of China’s push into humanoid robots is also not really covered by the Western media.

I am referring to the Beijing Humanoid Robot Innovation Center’s Tiangong, among others. Tiangong, an electrically-driven general-purpose humanoid that's capable of stable running at 6 km/h, while also able to tackle slopes and stairs in "blind conditions” was unveiled in May, 2024.

Investors and U.S. analysts that assume Tesla is way ahead in humanoid robotics aren’t necessarily right. Developed by Beijing-based National and Local Co-built Embodied AI Robotics Innovation Center, Tiangong is claimed to be the first full-sized humanoid robot driven purely by electric power. Furthermore China competes favorably on price of course, where Unitree’s Go2 robodog is just $1,600. This is key when it comes to these robots being deploy in conflict zones which is already occurring in the Ukraine. Asymmetric warfare now means cheap drones and cheap robot dogs are part of the kill-loop. That being the case, the U.S. is going to have to increase spending on robotics in the 2025 to 2030 period drastically to keep up with China’s current capabilities and rate of improvements.

The Beijing Humanoid Robot Innovation Center was set up in November, 2023. The company is a joint venture from Beijing Yizhuang Investment Holdings Limited, UBTech Robotics, Xiaomi, and Beijing Jingcheng Machinery Electric. We are starting to see these Government and Corporate coalitions as well in the U.S. increasingly in 2025 (e.g. Stargate for datacenters). We’ll talk more about Stargate in another future article.

List of Robot Conferences on the Agenda in 2025

• RoboCup German Open: 12–16 March 2025, NUREMBERG, GERMANY

• German Robotics Conference: 13–15 March 2025, NUREMBERG, GERMANY

• RoboSoft 2025: 23–26 April 2025, LAUSANNE, SWITZERLAND

• ICUAS 2025: 14–17 May 2025, CHARLOTTE, NC

• ICRA 2025: 19–23 May 2025, ATLANTA, GA

• IEEE RCAR 2025: 1–6 June 2025, TOYAMA, JAPAN

• RSS 2025: 21–25 June 2025, LOS ANGELES

• IAS 2025: 30 June–4 July 2025, GENOA, ITALY

• ICRES 2025: 3–4 July 2025, PORTO, PORTUGAL

• IEEE World Haptics: 8–11 July 2025, SUWON, KOREA

• IFAC Symposium on Robotics: 15–18 July 2025, PARIS

• RoboCup 2025: 15–21 July 2025, BAHIA, BRAZIL

Read our Overview

So this newfound agility in robots is also a bit unexpected. Among other approaches, researchers have enabled China’s Unitree humanoid robot G1 to master the art of waltzing by mirroring human movements. For this, a team at the University of California, San Diego, has developed ExBody2, an AI system enabling robots to mimic and perform human movements with lifelike fluidity.

ExBody2, tested on two humanoid robots, smoothly performed tasks from walking and crouching to complex moves like a dance routine, throwing punches, and waltzing.

Read the Paper

So it’s not just Cosmos, Genesis, ExBody2 but so much that is occurring together in the robotics space both in the U.S. and China that’s leading to more capable robots and the foundations for general purpose humanoid robots. If I had to guess what year will officially be the ChatGPT moment for Robotics, I’d say 2029. The foundations are now in place and the national security competition between the U.S. and China accelerates this timeline. Competition is good for innovation.

I asked Grace Shao to dig into Unitree more for us, and her research and investigative analysis is highly valued.

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Introducing Unitree, China’s leading AI-embodied Robotics Company

By , of the Newsletter AI Proem, January 2025.

Articles by AI Proem

• Behind the AI Arms Race: U.S. vs. China Cloud Computing

• Made in China AI Apps That You Are Using - Developed by ByteDance, Alibaba, Tencent, Meitu, BaiChuan, MoonShot AI, Baichuan AI, MiniMax

• Deep Dive: Is Huawei like China’s Nvidia plus Google?

This year, at CES, which just wrapped up earlier in the month, it was all about AI integration into hardware, from wearables to AI-empowered furniture to robots! And not the non-sexy machinery robots that warehouses have all adopted—the fun ones, the ones we see in sci-fi movies.

There were 3,800 exhibitors at CES 2025, 1500 of whom were from China. If people said AI integration was still nascent in 2024, 2025 showed concepts becoming reality. Intelligent robotics completely dominated the showrooms, showcasing the rapid advancements in AI integration, from robotic dogs to AMRs to cleaning, agricultural, and compassion robots. Physical AI is having a ChatGPT moment.

That brings me to today's protagonist: the Chinese robotics firm Unitree and its robot dogs, which completely stole the show and have been the subject of much hype and craze on social media.

[The four American business/tech executives/ investors, Chamath Palihapitiya, Jason Calacanis, Gavin Baker, and David Friedberg (minus David Sacks), discussed the impressiveness of the Unitree robots and how some of them initially thought the videos were AI-generated during their 2025 Predictions episode on the All-In Podcast. ]

Alas, the conclusion is that 2025 will be a big year for AI-embodied robots.

Who is Unitree Robotics 宇树科技?

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Hey Everyone,

Let’s talk about robots and the humanoid robots today.

Reinforcement learning in 2025 might make Robots more maneuverable than ever.

“2024 is the year of prompt engineering.
2025 is the year of reward engineering.”

- Jim Fan, December 24th, 2024.

Robot maneuverability is improving - 1:46

The Unitree stunt videos are fairly entertaining lately. They display robots with more advanced maneuverability in the spirit of Boston Dynamics.

What is Genesis?

In December, 2024 an important project was announced. Genesis project — after a 24-month large-scale research collaboration involving over 20 research labs — a generative physics engine able to generate 4D dynamical worlds powered by a physics simulation platform designed for general-purpose robotics and physical AI applications.

• This is a new framework for training robots.

• Put simply, this is an open-source physics engine that allows fast creation of 4D environments for robotics and AI.

• It will accelerate robotics innovation, including in military scenarios. The massive research collab is highly likely to turn into several exciting startups.

Explore Project

I cannot overstate enough how important Genesis is as the result of a team of 20 researchers unveiled Genesis (mostly Chinese researchers trained in top tier Universities), the result is a framework that is useful.

If an AI can control 1,000 robots to perform 1 million skills in 1 billion different simulations, then it may "just work" in our real world. - Jim Fan (Nvidia)

Genesis Video: 3:26

Back in August, Morgan Stanley projected that the number of U.S. humanoid robots could reach 63 million units by 2050 with a $3 trillion impact to wages. Put another way, they estimates the humanoid robot population will be 40,000 by 2030 and swell to 63 million by 2050. Clearly the 2030s are going to be a pivotal decade for the 21st century’s moving into the Machine economy.

It’s not yet clear to me if humanoid (general purpose robots) are a bigger market than the Autonomous vehicle sector (or when that shift occurs) although obviously they have more potential utility in the smart cities of the future including eventually consumer home robotics.

I asked the super talented Diana Wolf Torres (one of my favorite voices in robotics) if she could summarize a Robotics report from Peter Diamandis and full disclosure, he’s an investor in Figure AI. Diana runs a Newsletter her too called Deep Learning With The Wolf.

Deep Learning With The Wolf

Deep Learning With The Wolf

I'm a freelance writer who loves to research A.I. and share what I've learned.

By Diana Wolf Torres

Figure AI and Tesla are the likely duopoly from the U.S. in humanoid robotics at least so far as it looks in 2024. Although eventually I expect Nvidia, Amazon, Apple and Google to have their own offerings as well.

Advances in Generative AI are mostly credited with a faster acceleration in robotics innovation that will likely have a nascent stage in the 2024 to 2028 period.

“Breakthroughs in generative AI are bringing 3D perception, control, skill planning and intelligence to robots,” said Rev Lebaredian, Nvidia’s vice president of omniverse and simulation technology.

I’ve written dozens of articles in my time blogging about the future of Robots in society, but this time it definately feels different. And I want you as a reader to think seriously about the future market for robots.

Source: CNBC.

Prediction: Nvidia will position itself for Robotics more in 2025

Audio breakdown: 5 minutes 34 seconds. Read “Nvidia bets on robotics to drive future growth”1 (FT).

Selections from Deep Learning With The Wolf Newsletter

Diana’s work can also be found on LinkedIn in the Newsletter Deep Learning Daily. Here are articles that I found highly worth reading:

• The Impossible Task of Trying To Sum Up 2024- The Year of AI

• Tesla's Autopilot: A Glitch in the Matrix?

• OpenAI's O3 Models: A Leap Toward AGI or a Cautious Step?

• From 1-800-ChatGPT to Google's Deep Research: AI Goes Big on Accessibility and Innovation

I consider Diana Wolf a subject matter expert when it comes to the Robotics ecosystem and future of humanoid robotics, the topic of her deep dive today.

As per my opinion, I estimate that 2025 has around a 65% probability to be an inflection year for the future of robotics. OpenAI has had internal discussions about building a humanoid robot. It (actually Sam Altman) has invested in Figure, 1X and Physical Intelligence. OpenAI acquiring Figure remains a distinct possibility in my opinion in the 2020s.

I came across a report on Robotics by Peter Diamondis who is the cofounder and executive chairman of Singularity University, among other things and who is also an investor in Figure 2. I asked Diane if she would be willing to summarize the key findings of the report as she’s very familiar with the topic.

Read the Report

Jim Fan is so entertaining:

“We are the generation of “robot immigrants”, en route to a new world of ubiquitous Physical AI, much like our parents are “digital immigrants”, learning to realign their lives on 6 inches of touch screen.” - Source.

• In this article Diana analyzes the report and gives you one of the most thorough overviews of the context of Humanoid robotics you’ll ever read.

• Including: what is the value proposition, comparing projections on number of humanoid robots in the next 15 years, who are the first-movers (U.S. and China), why battery tech is so important, and the real-world use cases in some detail, manufacturing costs and spects, etc…

• This one is truly for the robot nerds out there and one of the best articles on the topic I’ve ever read.

The Rise of Humanoid Robots: How 16 Companies Are Racing to Transform Our World by 2040

By , December, 2024.

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Hey Everyone,

What are we to make of Tesla’s recent (We, Robot) robotaxi event? Tesla’s Robovan is the surprise of the night. What a weird spectacle:

Watch the video: 2:12

Tesla announces the “Robovan”

With Elon Musk marketing spectacles it’s never clear just when that future will arrive. His much anticipated October 10th, 2024 event turned out to be a Cybercab reveal robotaxi event.

Self-driving autonomous vehicles have been fairly disappointing in the last decade, but there has been a robotics renaissance of late, to the point that Silicon Valley elites are even normalizing the term “Humanoids” to mean general purpose humanoid robots.

• The Robovan is a fully autonomous transporter that can seat up to 20 people and be adapted for personal or commercial use.

  

• After a decade of unfulfilled promises about driverless vehicles, Musk is leaning into the cybercab concept.

So much of Tesla’s vision of the future and shareholder value is now tied to its Humanoid robots.

Watch the video: 2:37

Tesla Optimus and Slow rollout of Full Self-Driving (FSD)

The Tesla demo featured Optimus watering plants, picking up groceries, and doing dishes.

FSD, which stands for Full Self-Driving, is Tesla’s premium driver assistance system, available today in a “supervised” version for Tesla electric vehicles. It’s controversial because it’s made very slow progress and hasn’t lived up to consumer expectations.

Tesla’s vision of the future is a bit on the shiny product side. “The Optimus will walk amongst you,” Tesla CEO Elon Musk says.

Elon Musk keeps saying things like Optimus will start performing “useful tasks” by the end of this year, and that it could retail for between $20,000 and $30,000 soon. To read more about this We, Robot event go here.

Tesla Cybercab (Protype)

Amazon is a Robotics Company

While Microsoft, Meta and Google pour $Billions into Generative AI, Amazon is turning into a full fledged robotics company. They are going for more automated warehouses. Amazon’s new warehouses will employ 10x as many robots. Learn more about Amazon robotics here.

Curiously like EVs though, robots are not right now in high demand. Orders for factory robots in North America plunged by nearly one-third last year (2023) from 2022’s record volume, according to the Association for Advancing Automation, a trade group for the robotics industry.

Amazon’s new Proteus is very impressive though. Proteus machines are designed to roam around with humans as they lift and move carts with packages weighing up to 800 pounds. Amazon’s play for Covariant AI was huge in my opinion. I’ll likely cover both Tesla’s event and Amazon’s new robotics developments in my other Newsletters.

I asked who has a great AI, tech and robotics Newsletter you should check out to help us summarize Generative AI merging with robotics pre 2025.

She’s the author of Deep Learning Daily, (more active right now on the LinkedIn version),  Diana excels at translating complex technological concepts for broad audiences and is a supreme tech editor at heart with a very broad understanding of these areas. She’s also an avid builder of screen-accurate Star Wars costumes! She also hosts a podcast.

Her coverage of Robotics is really what caught my eye. There’s a lot of emerging tech insights in her work.

Selection of her Work

1. Partner Robots: Are We Entering A New Era of Companionship?

2. The Singularity and Figure 02: Are We Nearing a Technological Tipping Point?

3. Loneliness Eased: Harvard Study Highlights the Role of AI Companions

For more articles like these go here.

“We, Robot” (Event) - In Images

(screenshots from X, Tesla account)

Robovan

Over 50 years, you might drive half a million miles – Tesla says its global fleet collectively does that every 3.5 minutes.

Robotaxi

By , September, 2024.

Audio Introduction by Diana (the guest post author)

The year 2024 is marked by a groundbreaking convergence of generative AI and robotics. This synergy is not only accelerating the development of smarter, more adaptable robots but is also expanding their role in various industries and our daily lives. As AI enables robots to become more autonomous, capable, and responsive to human needs, we’re witnessing a new era of human-robot collaboration. While the integration of these two fields is progressing rapidly, challenges remain as technology races ahead of practical implementation. 

Accelerating Humanoid Robot Development 

One of the most ambitious efforts in robotics today is the development of humanoid robots designed to function in environments originally built for humans. Both the U.S. and China are at the forefront of these advancements, though each is pursuing different goals and applications. The U.S. is focused on integrating these robots into industries like logistics and manufacturing, while China aims for more widespread adoption across various sectors. 

China, for instance, has set ambitious goals for the mass production of humanoid robots by 2025. The Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) has outlined plans for robots that can perform complex, multi-step tasks in environments designed for humans. These humanoid robots, with their two arms and legs, are being developed to navigate spaces and handle tasks that were previously out of reach for traditional robots. 

However, the road to mass-market adoption is not without its challenges. Cost efficiency is a critical hurdle, particularly in comparison to well-established robot solutions like mobile manipulators and autonomous mobile robots. For humanoid robots to gain widespread acceptance, they must prove their worth through enhanced return on investment, increased productivity, and greater adaptability across various industries. 

Key Contributions of AI to Robotics 

Generative AI is making significant strides in the field of robotics, enhancing the cognitive and physical capabilities of robots. Here’s how generative AI is transforming the industry:

1. Improved Reasoning and Planning: Large language models, like those developed by OpenAI and Google, are enabling robots to interpret high-level commands, understand contextual instructions, and execute complex, multi-step tasks. This is particularly valuable in dynamic environments where robots must adapt to unforeseen changes and make real-time decisions. 

2. Enhanced Visual and Motor Coordination: The integration of generative AI with visual and motor feedback systems allows robots to translate visual inputs into precise motor actions. This enables robots to perform tasks such as picking and placing objects with greater accuracy and efficiency, even in environments that are constantly changing. 

3. Natural Language Interfaces: AI-driven natural language interfaces are making it easier for users to interact with robots using everyday language rather than programming code. This democratization of robotics makes it accessible to non-technical users, paving the way for broader adoption across industries. 

4. Predictive Maintenance: AI models analyze real-time data from robots to predict potential malfunctions, enabling proactive maintenance that minimizes costly downtime and enhances operational efficiency. 

Healthcare Robotics: Enhancing Patient Care 

The use of robotics in healthcare has expanded beyond surgical applications to include patient monitoring, rehabilitation, and even psychological support. AI-assisted diagnostic systems are increasingly being used to detect diseases with high accuracy, often before symptoms become 

apparent. Meanwhile, robotic exoskeletons are enabling patients with mobility impairments to regain movement and independence. These advancements are not just improving patient outcomes—they’re also transforming the role of healthcare professionals, who now work alongside these machines in a collaborative partnership. 

Social Robots and Elder Care 

Japan, a pioneer in robotics for elder care, has introduced a variety of robots designed to assist with daily activities and provide companionship for the elderly. These robots, such as SoftBank Robotics’ Pepper and Paro Therapeutic Robot, are equipped with basic social skills and can engage in simple conversations, monitor health conditions, and even detect falls. The use of robots in elder care is driven by the country’s rapidly aging population and a shortage of human caregivers. 

These social robots are designed not just to provide practical assistance but also to alleviate loneliness and improve the mental health of elderly individuals. While these machines are not a

substitute for human interaction, they serve as a valuable tool in enhancing the quality of life for those who live alone or have limited mobility. 

Companion Robots: Navigating New Frontiers in Human Relationships 

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