Robots Archives

This Color-Changing Material Could Give Robots a New Way to Detect Touch

Austin Burgess·July 11, 2026

Engineers at Queen Mary University of London have created a tactile sensor, described in a study published in Science Advances, that allows robots to detect touch using a simple camera.

Tiny Robots Built From DNA Could Hunt Viruses and Deliver Drugs Inside the Human Body

Austin Burgess·April 7, 2026

A recent review published in the journal SmartBot says these DNA nanorobots could one day be capable of delivering drugs to specific locations in the body, capturing viruses like SARS-CoV-2, and even helping build tiny computing devices.

Dolphin-Shaped Robot Skims Oil From Water Using Sea-Urchin-Inspired Technology

Austin Burgess·March 16, 2026

Researchers at RMIT University designed a small, remote-controlled robot that uses a sea urchin-inspired filter to remove oil from water.

‘HoloRadar’ Equipped Robots Use Radio Waves and AI to ‘See’ Around Corners

Christopher Plain·February 12, 2026

University of Pennsylvania scientists have revealed the AI-driven HoloRadar system that lets robots see around corners using radio waves.

“Targeted Ultrasound Echolocation” Inspired by Bats is Helping This Engineer Develop Tiny Flying Robots That Navigate in Total Darkness

Christopher Plain·November 5, 2025

A robotics engineering professor is building tiny, autonomous flying robots that can use sound waves to navigate in total darkness like bats.

Humanoid Robots Take the Field in China’s First “Robot Olympics”

Chrissy Newton·August 19, 2025

It's official: the intersection of robotics and competitive sports has arrived with China's three-day World Humanoid Robot Games, an event dubbed the "Robot Olympics."

A Billion-Year-Old Life-Giving Mystery

This week on The Debrief Weekly Report...

MJ Banias·March 11, 2025

On this week's episode of The Debrief Weekly Report, Kenna and Stephanie spelunk into a billion-year-old crater and discuss new theories regarding life on Earth. They then plow a quick news story regarding autonomous farming, and handle a great story about robotic arms being controlled by the mind.

Hydrogen Mining the Misty Mountains

This week on The Debrief Weekly Report...

MJ Banias·February 25, 2025

On this week's episode of The Debrief Weekly Report, Kenna and MJ climb to the mountain top and talk about mining hydrogen. They also get weird with shapeshifting embryonic robots, and then remember a time before smartphones made us dumb.

Tesla to Manufacture Humanoid Robots That Could be Available by Next Year, Elon Musk Says

Chrissy Newton·July 23, 2024

Elon Musk says Tesla is moving forward with plans to begin producing human-like robots called 'Optimus' as soon as next year.

These Robots Kill Cancer Cells

This week on The Debrief Weekly Report...

MJ Banias·July 12, 2024

Join Stephanie and Kenna for the last episode of the season as they discuss a new nano robot developed in Sweden that can kill cancer cells in mice. They also open a channel to the ISS and discuss how NASA is using laser relays to send photos and messages to astronauts. Lastly, they take a trip and talk about how a new study says that micro-doses of LSD can aid in healthy sleep.

The Road to Hell Chickens is Paved With Good ‘Egg-tentions.’

This week on The Debrief Weekly Report...

MJ Banias·January 31, 2024

SUBSCRIBE TO ‘THE DEBRIEF WEEKLY REPORT’: Apple Podcasts | Spotify On today’s episode, Kenna and Stephanie descend into the darkest depths...

Sci-Fi Nightmare? These Insect-inspired Micro-Robots are the Smallest, Lightest, and Fastest Ever Built

Christopher Plain·January 24, 2024

Like something right out of a science fiction nightmare, Washington State University engineers have created a pair of insect-inspired micro-robots that are the smallest, lightest, and fastest ever built.

Robot Swarms Being Developed to Mine the Moon

Candy Chan·September 21, 2021

A team of researchers plans to advance space-mining methods using swarms of autonomous robots to mine and collect minerals for space missions.

New Robot Workers Use AI To Predict Human Co-Worker Movements

Christopher Plain·April 9, 2021

New AI system helps industrial robot workers observe and predict their human co-workers' movements to maximize efficiency and improve safety.

Super Intelligent AI May Be “Uncontrollable,” says new study

Mike Damante·February 3, 2021

According to a new study, the actions of superintelligent AI may be hard to predict, making them uncontrollable.

New Study Shows Robots May Be Able to Have ‘Empathy’

Researchers develop a robot that can predict the actions of another based purely on visual cues.

MJ Banias·January 11, 2021

A new study from Columbia University has proven that a robot can anticipate another robot's actions based solely upon visual cues. Empathy may be next.

Our Future Robot Overlords Will Have Sick Dance Moves

Ryan Sprague·January 3, 2021

Boston Dynamics dropped a viral video recently featuring their various robots dance to The Contours' "Do You Love Me." It is pretty awesome.

Robots

This Color-Changing Material Could Give Robots a New Way to Detect Touch

Tiny Robots Built From DNA Could Hunt Viruses and Deliver Drugs Inside the Human Body

Dolphin-Shaped Robot Skims Oil From Water Using Sea-Urchin-Inspired Technology

‘HoloRadar’ Equipped Robots Use Radio Waves and AI to ‘See’ Around Corners

“Targeted Ultrasound Echolocation” Inspired by Bats is Helping This Engineer Develop Tiny Flying Robots That Navigate in Total Darkness

Humanoid Robots Take the Field in China’s First “Robot Olympics”

A Billion-Year-Old Life-Giving Mystery

This week on The Debrief Weekly Report...

This week on The Debrief Weekly Report...

Hydrogen Mining the Misty Mountains

This week on The Debrief Weekly Report...

This week on The Debrief Weekly Report...

Tesla to Manufacture Humanoid Robots That Could be Available by Next Year, Elon Musk Says

These Robots Kill Cancer Cells

This week on The Debrief Weekly Report...

This week on The Debrief Weekly Report...

The Road to Hell Chickens is Paved With Good ‘Egg-tentions.’

This week on The Debrief Weekly Report...

This week on The Debrief Weekly Report...

Sci-Fi Nightmare? These Insect-inspired Micro-Robots are the Smallest, Lightest, and Fastest Ever Built

Robot Swarms Being Developed to Mine the Moon

New Robot Workers Use AI To Predict Human Co-Worker Movements

Super Intelligent AI May Be “Uncontrollable,” says new study

New Study Shows Robots May Be Able to Have ‘Empathy’

Researchers develop a robot that can predict the actions of another based purely on visual cues.

Researchers develop a robot that can predict the actions of another based purely on visual cues.

Our Future Robot Overlords Will Have Sick Dance Moves

Sunlight at Night? Astronomers Fire Back at Controversial FCC Approval of Reflect Orbital’s Eärendil-1 Mirror Satellite

Connectivity Revolution: How 5G is Reshaping the Future of Manufacturing

The Galactic Trading Card of Human Civilization

Is AI Alignment Research Akin to “Helicopter Parenting”?