Robotics, AI and SmartTech News – Latest Headlines

AI improves robotic performance (w/videos)

New algorithms, simulated training prepare robots for real-world scenarios.

July 16, 2022 Read more

Deformable pump gives soft robots a heart

Researchers have leveraged hydrodynamic and magnetic forces to drive a rubbery, deformable pump that can provide soft robots with a circulatory system, in effect mimicking the biology of animals.

July 16, 2022 Read more

Bacteria-based biohybrid microrobots on a mission to one day battle cancer

Researchers have combined robotics with biology by equipping E. coli bacteria with artificial components to construct biohybrid microrobots.

July 16, 2022 Read more

A robot learns to imagine itself

Engineers build a robot that learns to understand itself, rather than the world around it.

July 14, 2022 Read more

Operating a smart home by breath control

Scientists invent novel breath-controlled device that allows users to command smart technology and monitor breathing.

July 12, 2022 Read more

Are robots helping or hindering sustainable development?

A new study brings us up to date on the benefits and pitfalls of robotics and autonomous systems when it comes to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals adopted by the United Nations.

July 9, 2022 Read more

A cooler side to soft robotics (w/video)

A multidisciplinary team of researchers combined liquid crystal elastomers with a thermoelectric device to develop a stretchable transducer capable of electrically controlled actuation, active cooling, and thermal-to-electrical energy conversion for soft robotics.

July 9, 2022 Read more

Responsive soft robots inspired by sputtering ketchup bottle

A smartly designed pressure valve allows soft robots to respond to their environment without the need for computer control. That brings robots with natural movements and tactile responses similar to those of living organisms one step closer to reality.

July 9, 2022 Read more

Artificial intelligence folds RNA molecules

Scientists describe a way to use AI to reliably predict the structure of certain RNA molecules from their nucleotide sequence.

July 8, 2022 Read more

Human-like robots may be perceived as having mental states

Some people perceive robots that display emotions as intentional agents, study finds.

July 7, 2022 Read more

Bees' 'waggle dance' may revolutionize how robots talk to each other in disaster zones

Study is the first to take inspiration from the dance honeybees use to describe the location of food and employ a version for robot-robot communication.

July 7, 2022 Read more

Shapeshifting robotic microswarm acts as a toothbrush, rinse, and dental floss in one

A shapeshifting robotic microswarm may one day act as a toothbrush, rinse, and dental floss in one.

July 6, 2022 Read more

Nasa considers sending swimming robots to habitable ocean worlds of the Solar System

Nasa has recently announced funding for a study into the feasibility of sending swarms of miniature swimming robots to explore oceans beneath the icy shells of our Solar System's many 'ocean worlds'. But don’t imagine metal humanoids swimming frog-like underwater. They will probably be simple, triangular wedges.

July 4, 2022 Read more

Breaking AIs to make them better

Researchers investigate ways to make AIs more robust by studying patterns in their answers when faced with the unknown.

June 30, 2022 Read more

Exploring alien worlds with robotic teams: Test mission on Mt. Etna

Conditions similar to those on the Moon or Mars can be found on Mt. Etna, where researchers are testing robotic swarms with which they plan to explore alien worlds in the future.

June 30, 2022 Read more

'Fake' data helps robots learn the ropes faster (w/video)

A way to expand training data sets for manipulation tasks improves the performance of robots by 40% or more.

June 29, 2022 Read more

Is AI good or bad for the climate? It's complicated

As the world fights climate change, will the increasingly widespread use of artificial intelligence (AI) be a help or a hindrance? A team of experts in AI, climate change, and public policy present a framework for understanding the complex and multifaceted relationship of AI with greenhouse gas emissions, and suggest ways to better align AI with climate change goals.

June 29, 2022 Read more

Tough new robots will aim to think and act for themselves in the most hazardous places on Earth - and beyond

Experts are combining expertise in 'hot-robotics' and AI to make a new generation of robots to work in harsh hotspots.

June 27, 2022 Read more