AI research institute Ai2 has unveiled a new set of robotics models trained entirely in simulation and designed to work on real robots without additional manually collected data or fine-tuning — a so-called zero-shot sim-to-real transfer.

At CES 2026, Boston Dynamics announced the start of mass production of its humanoid robot Atlas. The first customers are Hyundai, which holds a controlling stake in Boston Dynamics, and Google DeepMind, the company’s new partner in artificial intelligence.

Carbon Robotics, a Seattle-based company, has unveiled a new AI model called the Large Plant Model (LPM). According to TechCrunch, the model can instantly identify plant species to support weed control.

On January 6, 2026, the CES technology exhibition opened in Las Vegas. Companies are showcasing how artificial intelligence is becoming tangible in the form of humanoid robots.

From March 25 to 29, Beijing hosted the ZGC Forum, where developers showcased a wide range of brain–computer interface (BCI) products — from specialized chips to rehabilitation systems. The technologies attracted significant attention from visitors, according to China.org.

In 2025, Chinese company Unitree Robotics delivered more than 5,500 humanoid robots to customers. The firm ramped up production ahead of a planned IPO, the South China Morning Post reported, citing sources.

Figure AI unveils a single neural network that controls a humanoid robot — with a four-minute kitchen demo

Google DeepMind has introduced Gemini Robotics-ER 1.6, an upgraded embodied reasoning model designed to help robots understand physical environments more accurately, plan tasks more independently, and use external tools when needed.

At the second half marathon for humanoid robots in Beijing, Chinese machines posted dramatically better times on Sunday than they did a year ago. The winning robot, developed by smartphone maker Honor, completed the 21-kilometer race in 50 minutes and 26 seconds, beating the current human half-marathon world record set by Uganda’s Jacob Kiplimo in Lisbon the previous month. Honor, a Huawei spinout, took all three podium places, according to Reuters. Last year’s winning robot needed 2 hours and 40 minutes, more than twice as long as the human winner of the regular race.