Thanks to @humanoidsdaily for covering the first Humanoid Hub Conference and for sharing excerpts from our conversation, much appreciated. Looking forward to gathering with the community on October 15–16. https://www.humanoidsdaily.com/news/humanoid-hub-conference-2026-devang-adhyaru
SafeWorld has exited stealth mode and announced a $12.2 million seed round co-led by Shine Capital and a16z Speedrun. Its platform builds scenarios in the browser based on historical incidents, safety standards, and robot logs, then runs thousands of variants with realistic reactive human motion to test robot safety performance, covering robotic arms, humanoids, and mobile robots, with customers across industrial, manufacturing, logistics, construction, and home scenarios. The funding will be used for enterprise outreach, team expansion, and advancing AI safety research.
The California State Athletic Commission sent a cease-and-desist letter to robot-fighting startup Rek, requiring it not to hold any boxing or mixed martial arts matches involving humans in California without approval. In a match on September 18, human fighter Frankie LaPenna faced a Rek humanoid robot that was controlled remotely by a human through a virtual reality system. Rek's next planned match will pit two weapon-equipped robots against each other.
Sereact, Zalando, and CEVA Logistics announced the launch of AI-automated returns handling at fulfillment centers in Greven, Germany, and Świebodzin, Poland. Powered by Sereact's physical AI platform Cortex, the dual-arm robotic system can autonomously identify, grasp, and sort previously unseen fashion returns without product-specific training.
Parallel Systems, a rail technology startup founded in 2020 by former SpaceX engineers, has completed a $100 million Series C funding round led by AVP, with participation from multiple institutions. The company is developing battery-powered autonomous Panther rail vehicles that can travel independently for up to 500 miles, helping railways compete with trucking on short-haul routes.
AI runs on compute. Compute needs scaled infrastructure. We are working with @LambdaAPI to lend a hand for AI infrastructure.
Agility joined leaders from government, industry, and the scientific community at the White House's "Science: A New Golden Age" summit. Our focus: policies that lower the barriers to deploying humanoid robots like Digit, to strengthen American manufacturing, support workers, and maintain leadership in physical AI. #MadeForWork
KEENON Robotics announced its participation in the 140th Canton Fair in Guangzhou, where it is exhibiting its service robot solutions as an exhibitor in the service robot zone. The company welcomes visitors to experience its technology and discuss partnership opportunities.
KEENON Robotics will showcase its latest innovations in embodied cleaning and service robots at ISSA Show North America 2026 in Las Vegas, under the theme "BREAKTHROUGH UPGRADE AT ISSA: OPENING THE ERA OF EMBODIED CLEANING." Attendees can scan the QR code on the poster for details and to register.
Helm.ai announced it has signed $70 million in commercial contracts over the past 12 months, with customers including global automotive OEMs, Tier 1 suppliers, and industrial automation companies, and said the company is nearing break-even. Its foundation models use an unsupervised "deep teaching" method that hierarchically decouples perception and decision-making to improve data efficiency, and the technology has been used in SAE L2 to L4 autonomous driving, mining, construction, and delivery drone projects.
Deepak Pathak @deepakpathak (Co-founder & CEO of Skild AI) will attend the Humanoid Hub Conference as a keynote speaker. One general-purpose brain, many robot bodies. He will explain how @SkildAI achieves this. October 15-16, San Francisco
"Nothing is more human than having nerve." Secretary General for Investment Bruno Bonnell took the stage at Bang #BIG2026.
At Groceryshop 2026, retail robots entered a scaling phase. Simbe announced that 3,000 Tally robots have been deployed at retailers worldwide; Badger Technologies, under new CEO John Gehre, is shifting from a robotics company to a retail intelligence company.
UBTech and FAW-Volkswagen have reached a strategic cooperation. The two parties will jointly advance the development and testing of application scenarios for embodied intelligent robots in the logistics field and build demonstration application scenarios to accelerate the implementation of humanoid robot intelligent manufacturing solutions. UBTech has built four major core technology clusters: embodied brain, humanoid cerebellum, high-performance body, and swarm intelligence. Its super smart factory has been put into production, and multiple product lines are expected to begin delivery in the second half of the year.
The 10th issue of Digital Longhe reviews Longhe Intelligent's decade of development: starting from heavy-duty robotic dexterous hands, it expanded into heavy-duty intelligent loading and unloading robots that filled a domestic gap, led the formulation of 2 national standards and 10 industry standards, and participated in the formulation of 3 international standards. The company has built a 5G+ smart factory and was included in the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology's 5G factory list. It holds 529 authorized patents (114 invention patents) and 184 software copyrights, and its products are sold to more than 80 countries and regions, with cooperation with over 300 enterprises including Sinopec, XCMG, JCB of the UK, and KION Group of Germany.
China AGV Network compiles the top ten industry hotspots of the week. These include: Hangcha Group's batch customized lithium battery forklifts delivered to the graphite industry base of a Fortune Global 500 company; Tianneng's 51.2V314Ah industrial lithium batteries delivered to an aerial work machinery company.
OFweek reports that tactile vendors are competing for four budget categories around robot skin: components, data-collection tools, data, and models. Sharpa unveiled the D01 robot, the W02 dexterous hand, and the AE01 data glove with 22 encoders and vibration feedback at IROS 2026.
🤖ROBOTIS will attend 2026 RobotWorld At our booth, we will present a special AI Sapiens Show🪩✨ Only at ROBOTIS—don't miss it! [Join us] 📍 Location: KINTEX Exhibition Hall 1 (Halls 3–5), Goyang, South Korea 📍 Booth: C01 📅 Dates: November 4 (Wed) – November 7 (Sat), 2026 🕙 Hours · Wednesday to Friday 10:00 – 17:00 · Saturday 10:00 – 16:00 👉 Pre-register for ROBOTWORLD 2026 https://robotworld.or.kr/visitors/pre_registration.php #ROBOTIS #AISapiens #ROBOTWORLD2026 #Humanoid #DYNAMIXEL
LimX Dynamics has officially launched a co-building program for vocational embodied intelligence industry colleges, opening 30 partnership slots to institutions, channel partners, and ecosystem partners nationwide, with deep collaboration in areas including program development, curriculum development, practical teaching, faculty training, and employment coordination.
The article uses AMD's announcement of an all-stock acquisition of Fei-Fei Li's World Labs for about $8.2 billion as an entry point to compare Yingshen Intelligence's approach of betting on native 4D world models since its founding. Yingshen Intelligence's self-developed "Yingshen 360" capture system uses 4 to 6 consumer-grade RGB cameras to achieve millimeter-level, 25 frames per second real-time 4D data generation, reducing overall hardware costs by more than 90%; in the 4D foundation world model "Pojie S1", the GAF Gaussian Action Field achieves an average success rate more than 10 percentage points higher than the previous best method on dynamic manipulation tasks.
On September 30, embodied intelligence company Shanghai Sudo Technology announced the completion of a new funding round of over 1 billion yuan, jointly led by Shanghai Guotou Xiandao, Guotai Haitong, and Futeng Capital, with existing shareholders including Xiaomi following on.
Chaoyong AI reviewed ten underwater robotics companies, covering three lines: work-class complete systems, consumer products, and core underwater equipment. Shihang Intelligence secured over 1 billion yuan in orders in the first half of 2026 and completed a Series A round of over 1 billion yuan; Shandong Future Robot reported 2024 revenue of 276 million yuan and net profit of 97.18 million yuan; and Shenzhilan's STAR Market IPO has entered the inquiry stage. The original article noted that three hurdles stand between orders and revenue: delivery acceptance, sea trials, and payment collection. The sector does not lack money; what it lacks is a track record of turning orders into revenue.
Topstar will hold TOPS DAY 2026 from November 7 to 8, focusing on the implementation of industrial embodied intelligence. On November 7, it will release three new solutions covering cutting-edge planning, precision machining, and whole-factory injection molding upgrades. The event will also share real customer implementation cases and add sub-forums and a robot carnival.
According to Business Insider, physical AI company FieldAI has signed a term sheet to complete a new $700 million funding round at a $10 billion post-money valuation. More than a year after its previous round, its valuation has risen fivefold from $2 billion. The deal has not yet officially closed, and the lead investor has not been disclosed.
ZhenFund September recap: early-stage portfolio company Hesai Technology released the MT series, the world's smallest ultra-high spatial resolution LiDAR, integrating an ultra-small light spot, 3.5 mm ranging accuracy, and infinite encrypted scanning; on-site statistics at InterGEO 2026 put its surveying and mapping application market share at over 70%.
Digital Huaxia and Global Digital Technology have formed a strategic partnership. Leveraging Global Digital Technology's existing cultural tourism client resources, the companies will jointly build benchmark humanoid robot cultural tourism projects and complete real commercial pilots. Digital Huaxia's new-generation bionic robot "Xialan R03" supports multilingual interaction and wake-word-free natural dialogue, and can fully autonomously handle services such as greeting and reception, guidance, and explanation; the IP-customized dual-form robot "Xingxingxia P2" supports interaction in more than 20 languages, including Cantonese, English, and French. Global Digital Technology is a leading smart cultural tourism enterprise, with business serving more than 50 regulatory authorities, over 100 scenic areas, and more than 10 million visitors.
The Shanghai stop of the Zhongqing URKL City Tour Challenge was held on September 19 in Baoshan, Shanghai, with Team "White Eagle" sweeping victories in both the afternoon and evening sessions. The event showcased the T800's multi-robot collaborative perception and fully autonomous ring competition, achieving an end-to-end AI autonomous closed loop from perception and decision-making to motion execution, with new moves such as the "kip-up," "dragon-like footwork," and "jumping knee strike" making their debut. The event was hosted by the Baoshan District People's Government and organized by Shenqing Robotics, and was selected as a featured project of the 2026 Shanghai Tourism Festival's "Classic Activity Season."
XSTO is showcasing its X13 series embodied mobile robots, M4 smart wheelchair, and EzGo 3 series carbon-fiber electric wheelchairs at the 2026 International Welfare Equipment Exhibition (H.C.R.), held in Tokyo from October 7 to 9. The X13 series uses intelligent switching between wheeled quadruped and tracked modes to cross terrain such as steps and steep slopes; the M4 smart wheelchair, which previously won Japan's G-Mark Design Award, supports ramp self-balancing and multi-posture adjustment; and the EzGo 3 features a lightweight carbon-fiber design to reduce the burden on users on the go.
🤖 Congratulations to the @AveaRobotics team on joining @FoundryRobotics! More builders bringing robots into the real world. 🤖
Intel Capital portfolio companies Field AI and Skylo were named to Fast Company's 2026 Next Big Things in Tech list.
Heartfelt congratulations to the @MeckaAI team on their Series B led by @sequoia. Run rate surpassed $100 million in June. They expect run rate to reach $300 million by year-end. We believe it has become one of the most important companies in physical AI. Framework led the Series A, and we are honored to join the Series B.
Founded by three former Technical University of Munich (TUM) robotics students, the Munich-based company RobCo has reached a valuation of €1 billion, becoming TUM's 24th unicorn. The company develops modular, AI-assisted robotic systems based on research from TUM's Chair of Robotics, Artificial Intelligence and Real-time Systems, enabling small and medium-sized manufacturers to deploy flexible robotic automation more easily in a plug-and-play manner.
Two days in Birmingham, mostly listening. We'll be at @CareShow until tomorrow, talking with care home managers about the current reality of day-to-day care support. #CareShow26 #SocialCare #Robotics
FireDome, an autonomous wildfire defense company, announced the launch of its U.S. operations and the establishment of a demonstration site at Yuba County Airport in California for real-world system validation and demonstrations. Its stationary launcher can fire eco-friendly flame-retardant smart capsules up to 1,000 feet, creating firebreaks and extinguishing flying embers; each system is designed to protect up to 70 acres, providing 24/7 detection, precision targeting, and real-time suppression. The company will work with communities, businesses, and insurance institutions, starting with expansion into high-risk areas of California.
The CMU Robotics Institute's Howie Choset team provided analysis and modeling support for Northrop Grumman's Mission Robotic Vehicle (MRV). The new docking technology inserts a probe into the target satellite's liquid apogee engine nozzle to complete docking, and has been successfully executed multiple times in orbit. The MRV launched from Cape Canaveral in July this year and, in addition to refueling, can also support in-orbit repair, component replacement, and upgrades.
Sereact, Zalando, and CEVA Logistics have launched robotic automation of returns processing in Greven, Germany, and Świebodzin, Poland. Dual-arm robots run Sereact's physical AI software Cortex, which can identify, grasp, and sort previously unseen fashion returns without product-specific training.
SOSV has announced that the agenda for the SOSV Deep Tech Summit is now live. The summit will be held November 4-6 as a free, fully online, sponsor-free event, and more than 4,000 founders, VCs, and technologists have already registered.
At its IROS 2026 booth, ROBOTIS exhibited three technologies: AI Sapiens, AI Worker, and DYNAMIXEL, and gave a live demonstration of AI Sapiens. The live demonstration of AI Sapiens drew strong attention, with some attendees even dancing alongside the robot.
Missed Analyst & Investor Day 2026? The replay is now available: our leadership team discusses Digit 5 and the business, plus the full Q&A session. https://www.agilityrobotics.com/investors
Boston Dynamics announced the appointment of Rohit Prasad as its new CEO, effective October 7, 2026. Previously, Robert Playter stepped down at the end of February 2026, and Amanda McMaster served as interim CEO. Prasad spent 12 years at Amazon, where he was head of Alexa and Artificial General Intelligence and a senior vice president, and led development of the Amazon Nova family of foundation models; the company will draw on his AI background to accelerate the commercialization of physical AI.