🦾 Humanoid robots get AI brain and are put to work in car factories

🦾 Humanoid robots get AI brain and are put to work in car factories

Google Gemini AI is being integrated into the humanoid robot Atlas, enabling it to understand its surroundings and handle unfamiliar objects. The robots will soon be tested in Hyundai’s car factories. The goal is to make Gemini a shared operating system for robots, similar to Android in smartphones.

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  • Google DeepMind's AI model Gemini is being integrated into the humanoid robot Atlas to give it the ability to understand its surroundings and handle unknown objects.
  • The robots will be tested in Hyundai's car factories in the coming months.
  • The goal is for the AI model to function as a common operating system for many different robot manufacturers, similar to how Android is used in smartphones.

Humanoid robots have long been able to move impressively. They can dance and perform acrobatics. But they have lacked the ability to understand their surroundings, make complex decisions, and handle unknown objects with their hands. Now that is about to change.

Google DeepMind and Boston Dynamics are launching a collaboration in which the AI model Gemini Robotics is integrated into several of Boston Dynamics' robots, including the humanoid robot Atlas and the robot dog Spot. The collaboration was announced at the CES tech show in Las Veg.

The robot learns to understand the physical world

By giving the robot an advanced AI model as a brain, it gains the ability to navigate unfamiliar environments, identify objects, and manipulate them with its hands. This is exactly the type of capability required to perform manual labor.

The real value going forward is for our robots to be contextually aware of their environment and able to use their hands to manipulate any object, said Robert Playter, CEO of Boston Dynamics.

Plans include testing Gemini-powered Atlas robots in Hyundai's car factories in the coming months. Hyundai is Boston Dynamics' parent company.

Over 200 Chinese companies are developing humanoid robots

Competition in robotics has increased sharply. Advances in motors, batteries, sensors, and other components have made it easier for new companies to enter the field. More than a dozen companies in the US, including Agility Robotics, Figure AI, Apptronik, 1X, and Tesla, are working on humanoid systems. Around 200 Chinese companies are developing humanoid robots, according to the Chinese industry association CMRA.

Many AI companies are now turning their attention to robotics. They argue that AI models need a deeper understanding of the physical world to achieve humanlike intelligence. OpenAI is reportedly developing humanoid robots. Tesla has showcased its humanoid robot Optimus.

One AI brain for all robots

Google DeepMind hired the former CTO of Boston Dynamics in November. Rather than building its own robots, Google DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis envisions Gemini being used by many different robot manufacturers, in the same way Android runs on a wide range of smartphones.

Carolina Parada, head of robotics at Google DeepMind, notes that Gemini is designed to be multimodal, making it well suited to understanding and learning about the physical world. "Automotive is a great place to start, but our intention is to continue expanding to more and more applications," she said.

Data collected by the robots will in turn improve the AI model's ability to operate in the physical world.

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🤖 Robotics🧠 Artificial Intelligence

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