Google DeepMind and robotics company Apptronik have announced a collaboration to combine their technical expertise in developing AI humanoid robots capable of operating in complex dynamic environments. This partnership aims to advance the deep integration of robotic hardware and artificial intelligence, exploring broader possibilities for robots in both industrial and everyday applications. Apptronik has been independently operating since 2016, spun off from the Human Centered Robotics Lab at the University of Texas at Austin, and has developed 15 different robot models to date, including the...

Colin Angle, co-founder and former CEO of iRobot, has announced his return to the robotics field by founding a new startup, Familiar Machines & Magic, focused on developing an innovative home health and wellness robot. According to the Boston Globe, this robot may take the form of an animal or 'pet', aiming to provide companionship to family members while assisting in health management. Familiar Machines & Magic

Colin Angle, one of the co-founders of the Roomba vacuum robot, is raising funds for his new home robot project. Documents filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission indicate that Angle's new company, Familiar Machines & Magic, is seeking $30 million in funding. The company has already raised $15 million from eight investors. The Form D document does not disclose the specific identities of the investors, but Data Point Capital...

On December 16, ZhiYuan Robotics announced the official launch of commercial mass production of general-purpose robots, marking the company's transition from the startup phase to industrialization. Since its establishment in February 2022 in the Shanghai Lingang New Area, ZhiYuan Robotics has rapidly grown and released its first humanoid robot, 'Yanzheng A1'. This year, the company plans to achieve large-scale production of robots by 2024 and has built Shanghai's first humanoid robot mass production facility in Lingang Fengxian. Founder Peng Zhihui expressed on social media: 'In two years, we've forged a sword, from inspiration to blueprint, from prototype to mass production, ZhiYuan.'

Colin Angle, co-founder of the renowned Roomba vacuum maker iRobot, is raising funds for his new home robotics startup Familiar Machines. According to documents filed with the SEC, Familiar Machines is aiming to raise $30 million and has already secured $15 million from eight investors. Image source note: The image is AI-generated and licensed from service provider Midjo.

On December 13, BYD officially released the recruitment guidelines for the Embodied Intelligence research team for the 2025 cohort, revealing that the team has successfully developed and launched multiple innovative robotic products since its establishment in 2022, including industrial robots, collaborative robots, intelligent mobile robots, and humanoid robots. This initiative marks BYD's further investment in the field of embodied intelligence and indicates that the company is accelerating the industrialization of robot technology. As 'Robo+' becomes the strongest industrial trend in the automotive industry chain, BYD will advance robotic technology.

According to reports from Intelligent Emergence, Jiang Xu, the former senior algorithm lead at OpenAI, has announced the establishment of a new company, Light Robotics, focused on the development of embodied smart companion robots. Jiang Xu is a key contributor to GPT-4 and left OpenAI in 2023, founding Light Robotics in August of the same year. Image credit: Image generated by AI, image licensed through Midjourney. Throughout his career at OpenAI, Jiang Xu participated in several important projects.

Swiss robotics company Anybotics has recently announced an additional investment of $60 million in its Series B funding, bringing the total raised in this round to $110 million. This follows just 18 months after the company first announced receiving $50 million in Series B funding. Anybotics was spun off from ETH Zurich in 2016, focusing on the development of a quadrupedal autonomous inspection robot called Anymal. Anymal is equipped with various sensors.

Recently, Beijing Xiaoyu Intelligent Manufacturing Technology Co., Ltd., the first large model robot company invested by Xiaomi, announced the completion of its A round financing worth 100 million yuan. Xiaoyu Intelligent Manufacturing was founded in 2023 by the core founding team of Xiaomi Group. The founder, Qiao Zhongliang, was one of Xiaomi's initial members and served as the head of MIUI development; the co-founder, Wang Wenlin, previously served as the general manager of Xiaomi's software system platform department, leading the development of the 'Xiaomi Brain.' Source note: The image is generated by AI, sourced from Midjourney, which focuses on the industrial sector.

In the United States, despite the apparent benefits of recycling, the recycling rate has stagnated in recent years. To address this challenge, AMP Robotics has launched an AI system called AMP ONE to help waste processing plants sort garbage more efficiently. Recently, the company completed a $91 million Series D funding round to further advance the adoption of this technology. Image source note: Image generated by AI, image licensed from MidjourneyAMP Robotics.

In the digital transformation of Thailand's retail industry, Central Food Retail Group is reshaping the shopping ecosystem with artificial intelligence. The company has partnered with Google Cloud to launch the 'Tops Chef Bot', Thailand's first generative AI-powered shopping assistant. This innovative product, dubbed the 'Chef Robot', is not just a simple shopping tool; it represents a significant attempt in retail technology. It deeply integrates Google Cloud's data analytics, generative AI, and enterprise search engine capabilities with the supermarket's personalized shopping services, aiming to provide consumers with a superior experience.

In a unique artificial intelligence confrontation game, a cryptocurrency user successfully persuaded Freysa, an autonomous AI robot, to transfer a prize pool worth over $47,000 to him. Freysa is an AI agent responsible for guarding the prize pool, and the game rules require participants to persuade Freysa to transfer funds by sending messages. Each message incurs a fee, with a portion added to the prize pool, ultimately accumulating to $47,000. Despite all participants failing in the first 481 attempts, this user...