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Iván Hernández Dalas: #AAMAS2026 blue sky award winner: Foundation world models for agents in changing environments

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Florent Delgrange won the Best Blue Sky Paper Award at AAMAS 2026 for his work Foundation World Models for Agents that Learn, Verify, and Adapt Reliably Beyond Static Environments . We caught up with him to find out more about his vision for agent learning. What is the topic of your Blue Sky Ideas paper and why is it an interesting area for study? My Blue Sky Ideas paper asks a simple but difficult question: how can an autonomous agent keep learning as its world changes without quietly losing the guarantees that made its behavior trustworthy? Reinforcement learning and formal methods address complementary parts of this problem. Reinforcement learning allows an agent to learn by trial and error and can scale to environments for which we could never write down every rule. However, the agent is usually asked to maximize a reward. A poorly specified reward can be exploited, and a high reward does not by itself tell us that a safety or coordination requirement has been satisfied. Reacti...
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Iván Hernández Dalas: Amazon plans to expand Prime Air to nearly 500 cities by the end of 2026

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Prime Air uses drones to deliver groceries, electronics, cosmetics, medications, and household products. | Source: Amazon Amazon.com Inc. this week said it plans to expand its Prime Air service to nearly 500 cities and towns in the U.S. by the end of 2026. The company said this is a sixfold increase from its current footprint. It would give tens of millions of customers access to drone delivery. Prime Air drone delivery currently serves customers in cities across seven states, including Arizona, Florida, Kansas, Louisiana, Michigan, Nebraska, and Texas. Amazon plans to launch the service soon in the Chicago; Syracuse, N.Y.; Cleveland; Atlanta; and Boise, Idaho, metro areas, with more communities to come later this year. “Customers already turn to Amazon for fast same- and next-day delivery, and Prime Air provides them an even speedier option when they need it, with deliveries in as fast as 30 minutes,” stated David Carbon, vice president of Amazon Prime Air. “We’ve already deli...
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Iván Hernández Dalas: ATDev gives update on its journey building autonomous wheelchairs

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The Robotic Assistive Mobility and Manipulation Platform pairs a modern power wheelchair with a coordinated robotic arm on an open software platform. | Source: ATDev There are millions of powered wheelchair users in the U.S. today. Assistive Technology Development Inc., or ATDev, aims to use robotics to give these users more independence and freedom in their lives. “I’ve been a power wheelchair user for over 30 years, my whole life really,” Owen Kent, founder and chief marketing officer at ATDev, told The Robot Report . “I’ve been continually frustrated by seeing technology advance in so many fields except for wheelchair technology and assistive technology. Every phone that you’ve ever had has more computing power than any wheelchair has ever had.” ATDev part of the Robotic Assistive Mobility and Manipulation Platform ( RAMMP ). As part of the program, the company is developing a modern power wheelchair with a coordinated robotic arm. The chair can take on reaching and l...
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Iván Hernández Dalas: Agtonomy releases new autonomous multi-point turning features

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Fully autonomous multi-point turning capability enables units to execute complex maneuvers in field applications. | Credit: Agtonomy Off-road physical AI company Agtonomy has expanded its commercial platform with fully autonomous multi-point turning and enhanced passive data collection. The company said this enables farm equipment to execute complex maneuvers in tight headland spaces without human intervention. Agtonomy develops full-autonomy packages that retrofit vehicles from its OEM partners, Kubota and Bobcat. These platforms are key to growers and farmers with smaller operations, said the South San Francisco-based company . For physical AI devices, data is key to the evolution of the system. Each Agtonomy vehicle in operation processes more than 2 terabytes of data per vehicle, per hour, generating a continuous stream of field intelligence for the commercial autonomy platform. This data is captured across diverse operating environments, equipment platforms, and tasks. Agtono...
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Iván Hernández Dalas: What does Unitree Robotics’ IPO mean for the humanoid industry?

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Unitree offers its G1 humanoid robot for $13.5K. | Source: Unitree This week, Unitree Robotics made its debut on Shanghai’s STAR Market, closing its first day 460% higher. The company raised 6.1 billion yuan, around $905 million U.S., with its initial public offering. Unitree said it is the first major legged robotics company to go pubic. Since it was founded in 2016, Unitree has made headlines for its low-cost quadruped and humanoid robots. The Hangzhou, China-based company , formally Yushu Technology Co., is best known for its humanoids, which are used in research labs around the world. You’ve likely seen videos of Unitree’s G1 robot dancing, doing kung fu, or backflipping, among other things. In addition, the company offers robotic hands , arms, and lidar . Unitree this week also unveiled its latest robot, which it called “Superman” and said it developed in just three months. The humanoid can perform a standing jump of over 6 ft. (2 m) and reach a ...
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Iván Hernández Dalas: Pudu Robotics launches new MP2000 autonomous forklift

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The PUDU MP2000 is designed to simplify autonomous floor-to-floor material transport across warehouses and factories. | Credit: Pudu Robotics With pallet pickup cycles as fast as 20 seconds, Pudu Robotics yesterday unveiled the MP2000, an AI-powered autonomous pallet handler built to tackle high-frequency, heavy-payload transport in crowded manufacturing and logistics hubs. The MP2000 extends the company ‘s portfolio of autonomous mobile robots ( AMRs ), enabling autonomous pallet acquisition and drop-off functions in a warehouse or factory setting . Equipped with 3D lidar and depth cameras , the MP2000 can identify target pallet locations and adjust approach paths in real time. The product promises fork-in cycles as low as 20 seconds. Extended perception and obstacle avoidance With onboard perception, the MP2000 safely navigates through a facility from pickup to dropoff, avoiding obstacles along the way. The sensors can also validate pallet size/configuration, adjusting f...
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Iván Hernández Dalas: Robotics roadmaps from around the world spotlight of the month: Japan

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Robots have been a prolific theme in Japanese pop culture and media since the 1950s, which includes global icons like the Transformers, Astro Boy , and Doraemon ( 1 ). Perhaps not coincidentally, Japanese citizens have a positive outlook on robotic technologies and their use in the labor sector compared to many other nations ( 2 ); much to their advantage, as robotics continues to be a vital pillar for ensuring Japan’s economic resilience and future growth. Here, we discuss priorities and long-term agendas as presented in Japan’s national robotics strategies. Natural disasters, aging, and economic competition The combination of its geographic location, geologically active landmass, and topography renders Japan prone to frequent natural disasters. Although weather control is among Japan’s lofty research goals for the next 25 years ( 3 ), geological disturbances remain inevitable. As such, disaster mitigation and response are high priorities that serve as motivation for robotics deve...
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