NSF-funded Purdue University project develops autonomous aerial and ground robots (UAVs/UGVs) for early disease detection in apple orchards as part of AI-ENGAGE awards.

NVIDIA collaborates with Opentrons to integrate NVIDIA Isaac robotics and Cosmos simulation into wet-lab workflows, enabling AI to design and execute biological experiments.

Unitree-built dancing robots performed a choreographed show at the Web Summit Qatar 2026 opening ceremony, highlighting advances in embodied AI.

Microsoft and OpenAI discuss investing up to $500 million in Figure AI’s humanoid robots, valuing the company at $1.9 billion.

Kennesaw State researcher Lingfeng Tao receives NSF $300K and NVIDIA $40K grants to develop multi-finger robotic hands with AI for human-like dexterity in manipulation, targeting surgery, space, and disaster response.

Google DeepMind CEO stated robotics is nearing a physical AI breakthrough.

Konnex secured $15 million in funding to develop a decentralized framework for autonomous robots handling physical labor, enabling onchain contracting, verification, and payment.[2]

Mobileye acquires humanoid robot startup Mentee Robotics for $900M.

Mytra raises $120 million Series C to scale supply chain robotics amid industry boom.

'Physical AI' enters the hype machine in transportation and robotics developments.