Robotics & Automation News

Where Innovation Meets Imagination

human-robot interaction

Interview with Kardome CEO: Teaching robots to hear like humans

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For much of the past decade, progress in robotics and autonomous systems has been framed largely through vision. Cameras, LiDAR, and computer vision algorithms have dominated discussions around perception, mapping, and situational awareness.

Sound, by contrast, has often been treated as a secondary input – useful for wake words and basic commands, but rarely central to machine intelligence.

Yet hearing is arguably one of the most fundamental senses for understanding the world, particularly when it comes to language and interaction. Humans begin responding to sound before birth, learning rhythm, tone, and voice long before their eyes ever open. [Read more…] about Interview with Kardome CEO: Teaching robots to hear like humans

Social and companion robots: More than just machines?

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For decades, robots were built to weld, lift, inspect, and assemble. Their world was the industrial floor – structured tasks, predictable environments, and a focus on efficiency.

That paradigm is shifting. A new category of machines is emerging, designed not to move pallets or operate tools but to interact, comfort, teach, and keep people company.

Social and companion robots occupy a different space in the automation landscape. Instead of replacing physical labour, they augment human relationships, taking on roles traditionally associated with caregivers, teachers, receptionists, and even friends. [Read more…] about Social and companion robots: More than just machines?

When customers see robots being mistreated, their reactions reveal something deeper about society

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A new study from Hanyang University ERICA, in South Korea, has found that when people witness someone abusing a service robot, their response follows one of two psychological paths: some copy the aggressor’s behavior, while others feel empathy for the robot and act more kindly.

The research, led by Professor Taeshik Gong, offers one of the first empirical looks at a phenomenon that many people have noticed but few have studied – the discomfort that arises when robots are kicked, shoved, or insulted in public or online videos.

Such scenes, once intended to showcase a robot’s balance or durability, increasingly strike observers as needlessly cruel. [Read more…] about When customers see robots being mistreated, their reactions reveal something deeper about society

Last-mile delivery robots: Navigating sidewalks and urban landscapes

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An update on the progress and challenges of autonomous ground-based delivery robots

Estimates of the size of the global market for robotic and autonomous delivery vary widely, but most analysts agree that the category is growing fast from a relatively small base.

MarketsandMarkets projects the global delivery robots market at about $796 million in 2025, reaching $3.24 billion by 2030, representing a compound annual growth rate of approximately 32 percent.

Some analysts peg the segment more conservatively – $400 million in 2025 growing to $770 million by 2029 at a CAGR of around 18 percent – illustrating the uncertainty around scale, scope (food v parcel), and definitions (sidewalk v road-going pods). [Read more…] about Last-mile delivery robots: Navigating sidewalks and urban landscapes

Georgia Tech team designs robot guide dog to assist the visually impaired

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People who are visually impaired and cannot afford or care for service animals might have a practical alternative in a robotic guide dog being developed at Georgia Tech.

Before launching its prototype, a research team within Georgia Tech’s School of Interactive Computing, led by Professor Bruce Walker and Assistant Professor Sehoon Ha, is working to improve its methods and designs based on research within blind and visually impaired (BVI) communities.

“There’s been research on the technical aspects and functionality of robotic guide dogs, but not a lot of emphasis on the aesthetics or form factors,” says Avery Gong, a recent master’s graduate who worked in Walker’s lab. “We wanted to fill this gap.” [Read more…] about Georgia Tech team designs robot guide dog to assist the visually impaired

PAL Robotics brings TIAGo Pro and Kangaroo to Asia

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PAL Robotics, a pioneer in humanoid and service robotics, is taking part in two of the most important robotics events in Asia this fall: the 8th Conference on Robot Learning (CoRL 2025) from September 27-30 in Seoul, South Korea, and the 24th IEEE-RAS International Conference on Humanoid Robots (Humanoids 2025) from September 30 to October 2, also in Seoul.

These events are an opportunity to showcase TIAGo Pro, PAL Robotics’ versatile mobile manipulator, and Kangaroo, the company’s latest humanoid platform.

Advancing robotics research towards industry

PAL Robotics has spent over 20 years developing humanoid and mobile platforms that support researchers and companies worldwide.

Today, its robots are used to explore fields such as locomotion, grasping, human-robot interaction, and assistive robotics, bridging research and deployment across healthcare, industry, and education.

TIAGo Pro, the user-friendly mobile manipulator, is meant for Human-Robot interaction (HRI). Its advanced navigation and perception makes it an ideal platform for embodied AI and robot learning.

At the same time with Kangaroo, PAL Robotics introduces an agile humanoid robot designed as a legged manipulator for dynamic tasks and advanced locomotion research.

Showcasing innovation in Seoul

PAL Robotics will highlight how both TIAGo Pro and Kangaroo act as platforms for robot learning. Visitors will not only see but also try TIAGo Pro’s teleoperation demo, guiding the robot’s movements in real time.

This hands-on experience demonstrates how teleoperation enables intuitive control, provides valuable data for training robot learning algorithms, and connects AI models with real-world interaction.

At Humanoids 2025, under the global theme “Humanoids Moving Towards Industry”, Kangaroo will appear in live demonstrations, including the first edition of the Robot Fashion Show, walking the runway to showcase its unique design and architecture.

Expanding presence in Asia

By bringing these robots to Asia, PAL Robotics underlines its commitment to strengthening collaborations with researchers, universities, and businesses across the region.

These events are not only an opportunity to demonstrate technological progress, but also to connect with the local community.

Loomia launches tactile sensing developer kit to accelerate robotic skin innovation

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Loomia, the award-winning leader in soft and flexible electronics, is launching its first tactile sensing developer kit designed to help roboticists add high-resolution pressure sensing to robotic systems with ease.

The new Loomia Smart Skin Developer Kit gives robotics R&D teams a plug-and-play platform to test, prototype, and integrate tactile sensors across a range of robotic applications. [Read more…] about Loomia launches tactile sensing developer kit to accelerate robotic skin innovation

Beyond Beeps and Boops: Why Natural AI Voice is Critical for Next-Gen Robotics

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Today’s robots aren’t limited to the factory floor – they’re guides at airports, assistants in hospitals, and companions in homes.

As engineers have refined their mechanics and coding, there remains one aspect keeping them from really flawless human interaction: voice. Not merely the capacity to speak but the capacity to sound natural.

We are moving into a new era where computer-generated voices must reflect true human expression – warmth, hesitation, excitement, and empathy. [Read more…] about Beyond Beeps and Boops: Why Natural AI Voice is Critical for Next-Gen Robotics

The Role of AI Predictive Models in Autonomous Robotics

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The world of technology has evolved at an astonishing rate in the last few decades. With the rapid advancement in artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning, autonomous robotics has emerged as a critical area that’s shaping the future.

These robots, designed to perform tasks without human intervention, owe their increasing sophistication to AI predictive models.

But how do these predictive models influence the field of autonomous robotics? Let’s dive into the details. [Read more…] about The Role of AI Predictive Models in Autonomous Robotics

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