For example, Figure’s rival Agility Robotics claims it’s the only company in the US with paying customers for its humanoids. But industry safety standards for humanoids working alongside people aren’t fully formed yet, so the company’s robots have to work in separate areas.
This is why, despite recent progress, our homes will be the last frontier. Compared with factory floors, our homes are chaotic and unpredictable. Everyone’s crammed into relatively close quarters. Even impressive AI models like Gemini Robotics will still need to go through lots of tests both in the real world and in simulation, just like self-driving cars. This testing might happen in warehouses, hotels, and hospitals, where the robots may still receive help from remote human operators. It will take a long time before they’re given the privilege of putting away our dishes.
Deeper Learning
Everyone in AI is talking about Manus. We put it to the test.
The launch of the newest AI model from China, called Manus, has been accompanied by huge amounts of hype. It’s a general AI agent and uses multiple models to act autonomously on a wide range of tasks. (This distinguishes them from AI chatbots, which are based on a single large language model family and designed primarily for conversations.)
The wait list for testing out Manus is incredibly long, but our reporter Caiwei Chen was able to give it a try. Despite some glitches, she found it highly intuitive and says it shows real promise for the future of AI helpers.
Why it matters: As we covered last week, discussions about artificial “superintelligence” and the potential impact of AI on human labor have recently reached a new frenzy. Influential people think powerful AI systems that can outperform humans on many cognitive tasks are imminent, and they say governments need to do more to prepare. That’s still highly contested among AI researchers. In the meantime, Manus offers a good glimpse into how capable these models are right now.
Bits and Bytes
Waabi says its virtual robotrucks are realistic enough to prove the real ones are safe
While companies like Waymo pursue autonomous vehicles for use as taxis in cities, others are building big-rig trucks that don’t need a driver. Waabi, one of the leading companies in this space, has been testing trucks on roads in Texas since 2023, always with a human driver in the cab for backup. But now it says its simulation models are good enough to help persuade regulators to let them operate human-free later this year. (MIT Technology Review)