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Iván Hernández Dalas: Graphene-based sensor to improve robot touch

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Schematic showing the materials used in the sensor and the sensing array on a robotic manipulator. Figure from Multiscale-structured miniaturized 3D force sensors . Reproduced under a CC BY 4.0 licence. Robots are becoming increasingly capable in vision and movement, yet touch remains one of their major weaknesses. Now, researchers have developed a miniature tactile sensor that could give robots something much closer to a human sense of touch. The technology, developed by researchers at the University of Cambridge, is based on liquid metal composites and graphene – a two-dimensional form of carbon. The ‘skin’ allows robots to detect not just how hard they are pressing on an object, but also the direction of applied forces, whether an object is slipping, and even how rough a surface is, at a scale small enough to rival the spatial resolution of human fingertips. Their results are reported in the journal Nature Materials . Human fingers rely on multiple types of mechanoreceptors to ...
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Iván Hernández Dalas: Don’t miss Neuralink pioneer Noland Arbaugh keynote at the 2026 Robotics Summit

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Noland Arbaugh is the first patient for the Neuralink brain-computer interface. Arbaugh will be onstage at Robotics Summit & Expo 2026 in a closing keynote conversation with Steve Crowe, editorial director of The Robot Report . Arbaugh was injured in his early 20s after a shallow water diving accident that left him with tetraplegia . In January 2024, Arbaugh became the first human recipient of Neuralink ‘s investigational brain-computer interface implant as part of the company’s clinical trial. The Neuralink N1 implant has given Arbaugh agency and independence back in his life. The interface uses 64 flexible threads carrying 1,024 electrodes to record neural activity in the motor cortex and translate intended movement into computer control. The Neuralink implant is designed to let a user control a computer or mobile device. | Credit: Neuralink Arbaugh to demonstrate brain-computer implant onstage At the Robotics Summit, Crowe and Arbaugh will discuss how the interface funct...
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Iván Hernández Dalas: Opentrons introduces dynamic simulation, visualization for AI-generated lab workflows

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A researcher a Boston University’s DAMP Lab works with an Opentrons Flex robot. Credit: Opentrons Labworks Inc. Pharmaceutical companies and research institutions are using artificial intelligence to design robotic experiments at scale, but they need to know if AI-generated instructions will execute correctly before handling valuable samples and reagents. Opentrons Labworks Inc. today announced Protocol Visualization for Opentrons Flex, a new simulation and visualization capability. The feature allows scientists to simulate and inspect robotic protocols in a dynamic virtual environment before running them on the Flex system. The interface enables users to observe each step of an automated workflow. “This capability gives researchers a dynamic way to simulate and inspect robotic execution before an experiment begins, creating a clearer bridge between computational design and physical laboratory workflows,” stated James Atwood, CEO of Opentrons. “As AI systems propose more experimen...
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Iván Hernández Dalas: Humanoid robotics developers must address a wide range of applications

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Humanoid robots such as Optimus need to evolve from industrial to more general applications. Source: Tesla Humanoid robots are becoming an important part of our technological reality, opening up new horizons in science, industry, and everyday life. These machines promise to solve a wide range of problems, thanks to their designed adaptability to the environment. Sergey Lonshakov, founder of AIRA and the architect of the Robonomics project, recently spoke about the latest advances in humanoid robot development. He addressed the potential benefits and the challenges facing society with these next-generation systems . When will humanoid robots be capable? The Chinese-made Unitree G1 is learning to with reinforcement learning, which is very inspiring for me. Since 2015, I’ve been working on technical projects with a team of 15 people — three generations of ITMO University robotics graduates. Our goal is to develop hypotheses that could be of interest in the near future and try t...
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Iván Hernández Dalas: Data security is the foundation of trust in physical AI

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Cyber and data security are key concerns for physical AI such as this ANYmal inspection robot. Source: ANYbotics If you follow the robotics industry, you have likely seen the wave of humanoids performing backflips, robot dogs navigating parkour, and robotic arms folding laundry. This pace of innovation is inspiring, and it is fascinating to see the impact of AI on physical machines. However, as we move technology from the controlled safety of the lab into the complexity of the real world, a security headline serves as a stark reminder for the broader industry. Reports recently surfaced regarding critical security flaws in consumer robot vacuums . Interestingly, this was discovered by a software engineer who stumbled into the vulnerability by accident, gaining full control over devices and accessing cameras and microphones to peer into private homes. While a vulnerability in a living room is a serious privacy concern, an autonomous robot in a chemical plant or a high-voltage power ...
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Iván Hernández Dalas: Ed Mehr on transforming manufacturing at Machina Labs; AW26 Recap

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The Robot Report Podcast · Ed Mehr on Transforming Manufacturing at Machina Labs Episode 235 of The Robot Report Podcast features Ed Mehr, co-founder and CEO of Machina Labs. In addition, Eugene Demaitre, editorial director for The Robot Report , is back from a weeklong trip to Seoul. Gene shares some takeaways from Automation World, or AW 2026 , and discusses what he learned from the international companies exhibiting in South Korea . Mehr joins the show to discuss how his company is changing hardware production through flexible, robotic-powered factories that switch products at the click of a button. He offers insights on software-defined factories, advanced automation, and strategic partnerships shaping the future of hardware production. Ed Mehr, co-founder and CEO, Machina Labs  Mehr is an entrepreneur and engineer specializing in advanced manufacturing, robotics, and artificial intelligence. At Machina Labs, he leads efforts to integrate AI-driven robotics into fle...
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Iván Hernández Dalas: Robot Talk Episode 148 – Ethical robot behaviour, with Alan Winfield

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Claire chatted to Alan Winfield from the University of the West of England about developing new standards for ethics and transparency in robotics. Alan Winfield is Professor of Robot Ethics at the University of the West of England (UWE), Visiting Professor at the University of York, and Associate Fellow of the Cambridge Centre for the Future of Intelligence. Alan co-founded the Bristol Robotics Laboratory, where his research is focussed on the science, engineering and ethics of cognitive robotics. Alan is an advocate for robot ethics; he chairs the advisory board of the Responsible Technology Institute at the University of Oxford and has co-drafted new standards on ethical risk assessment and transparency. View Source
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