Are brain waves the next unlock for physical AI?

Are brain waves the next unlock for physical AI?

The frontier of physical AI is a Jenga game in a warehouse in San Leandro, California. That warehouse is occupied by Encord, a company that builds data tooling used to train AI models. Andrew Ceja is a pilot—the company’s term for its robotic trainers—and he’s carefully pulling wooden blocks from a tottering tower while wearing…

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Agility Robotics plants its flag in Tesla’s backyard

Agility Robotics plants its flag in Tesla’s backyard

Agility Robotics is opening a 60,000-square-foot facility to train its humanoid robots in Fremont, California, just up the highway from the factory where Tesla is expected to start manufacturing its Optimus robots this year. Tesla has increasingly bet on Optimus. Elon Musk recently said he expects it to be “the biggest product ever” once it’s…

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This humanoid robotics company is going public, but its CEO isn’t promising a robot in your home anytime soon

This humanoid robotics company is going public, but its CEO isn’t promising a robot in your home anytime soon

The humanoid robotics market is awash in money right now. Last week, AI2 Robotics, a Shenzhen-based startup that makes wheeled humanoid robots, raised roughly $735 million at a nearly $3 billion valuation. Earlier this year, Apptronik, an Austin-based maker of humanoid robots for manufacturing and logistics, closed a $935 million funding round valuing the company…

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Builders Stage agenda revealed for Disrupt 2026

Builders Stage agenda revealed for Disrupt 2026

The Builders Stage is returning to TechCrunch Disrupt 2026, bringing together founders, startup operators, and investors for practical conversations on what it takes to build and scale successful companies. Hear from startup and venture leaders shaping the tech ecosystem, including Grant Lee, CEO and co-founder of Gamma; Leah Solivan, founder and general partner at Precedent.vc; Robby Stein, VP of…

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