Robotics firm Boston Dynamics has struck a partnership with Google’s AI analysis lab to hurry up the event of its next-generation humanoid robotic Atlas — and make it act extra human round folks.
The partnership, which was introduced Monday through the Hyundai press convention at CES 2026, is centered on robotics analysis that may use Google DeepMind’s AI basis fashions. Boston Dynamics’ humanoid robotic Atlas would be the first check case, in response to Carolina Parada, senior director of robotics at Google DeepMind.
“We’re trying to combine our cutting-edge AI basis fashions with Boston Dynamics’ new Atlas robots, and we’ll purpose to develop the world’s most superior robotic basis mannequin to satisfy the promise of true general-purpose human wants,” Parada mentioned onstage.
The tie-up comes lower than a yr after the Google AI analysis lab introduced new AI fashions referred to as Gemini Robotics which might be designed to permit robots to understand, motive, use instruments, and work together with people. Gemini Robotics relies on a large-scale multimodal generative AI mannequin, Gemini. On the time, Google DeepMind mentioned the robotics AI mannequin was skilled to generalize conduct throughout a spread of various robotics {hardware}.
Enter Boston Dynamics, and its majority proprietor, Hyundai Motor Group. Whereas accelerating analysis might be a central piece of this partnership, this has real-world scaling intent.
Boston Dynamics already has merchandise, just like the quadruped Spot, which might be in prospects’ palms in additional than 40 nations. Its warehouse robotic Stretch has unloaded greater than 20 million bins globally since its launch in 2023, in response to Hyundai. Now Boston Dynamics and Hyundai are making ready for the subsequent era, beginning with the humanoid robotic Atlas, which the corporate introduced Monday is already in manufacturing and headed to the Hyundai manufacturing unit in Savannah, Georgia
A prototype of Atlas walked onstage through the press convention, displaying off its skill to maneuver. However as Alberto Rodriguez, director of Atlas conduct at Boston Dynamics, famous, making “Atlas right into a product requires greater than athletic efficiency for humanoids to essentially ship on their promise. They’ve to have the ability to work together with folks naturally.”
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Rodriguez and his counterparts at Boston Dynamics consider that current developments in AI have created a transparent path to get to these capabilities. That type of pure interplay with people has actual security implications.
The Atlas product, which was additionally revealed onstage Monday and can ultimately head to Hyundai’s manufacturing unit, has 56 levels of freedom with rotation joints and human-scale palms which have tactile sensing. And it’s robust. The Atlas robotic can carry as much as 110 kilos and is designed to carry out repetitive actions.
With that type of dexterity and energy, will probably be vital for Atlas, or any humanoid robotic, to soundly work together and work with people. A few of that has been dealt with on the {hardware} aspect; Atlas, as an illustration, has 360-degree cameras to permit it to see when individuals are approaching. However DeepMind’s work may assist the robots discover ways to act.
“Reasonably than having a set of predefined, loaded duties onto the robotic, we expect robots ought to perceive the bodily world the identical method we do,”Parada mentioned. “They need to be capable of be taught from their expertise. Ought to be capable of generalize new conditions and get higher over time. So whether or not it’s to assemble a brand new automotive half or to tie your shoelaces, robots ought to be taught the identical method we do from a handful of examples, after which get higher in a short time with a bit little bit of follow.”
Hyundai, which plans to convey Atlas to its manufacturing unit this yr and ultimately deploy them for duties like elements sequencing by 2028, has additionally developed protocols to extend security and effectivity.
Hyundai mentioned Monday it’s opening a U.S. facility this yr referred to as a Robotic Metaplant Software Heart, or RMAC, that may educate robots find out how to map actions like lifts and turns. Coaching knowledge from RMAC might be mixed with real-world knowledge collected through a software program platform utilized in its Georgia manufacturing unit to repeatedly enhance the robots.
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This text was up to date to incorporate extra details about Atlas’ specs.
