Report: Meta to Form Team Focused on AI-Powered Humanoid Robots
Meta is reportedly forming a new team that will be devoted to developing artificial intelligence-powered humanoid robots.
The team will be within the company’s Reality Labs hardware division, Bloomberg reported Friday (Feb. 14), citing unnamed sources. It will be led by Marc Whitten, the former CEO of General Motors’ Cruise self-driving division, and will add about 100 engineers this year.
Meta did not immediately reply to PYMNTS’ request for comment.
The company plans to work on its own humanoid robot hardware, with a focus on robots that can perform household chores, as well as AI, sensors, and software that could be used by a variety of companies manufacturing and selling robots, according to the report.
Meta Chief Technology Officer Andrew Bosworth wrote in an internal memo, per the report: “The core technologies we’ve already invested in and built across Reality Labs and AI are complementary to developing the advancements needed for robotics.”
The company is betting that humanoid robots will not be widely available for a couple of years but that they will be a major focus for Meta and the entire tech industry, according to the report.
The report came shortly after news of other companies’ efforts in projects involving robots.
It was reported Wednesday (Feb. 12) that Apple is exploring humanoid and non-humanoid robots for smart home applications. The products are in the early proof-of-concept stage at Apple and mass production of any potential Apple robots would likely not start any time before 2028.
On Feb. 3, it was reported that robots were among several product lines included in a trademark application filed by OpenAI. The company also began hiring for a new robotics team.
Apptronik said Thursday (Feb. 13) that it raised $350 million to help deploy its AI-powered humanoid robot, Apollo. The company said the funding will allow it to scale manufacturing of Apollo units to fulfill growing orders from a range of industries.
In January, humanoid robotics firm 1x acquired robotics startup Kind Humanoid, saying the move unites two teams that aim to advance humanoid technology. Both firms said these robots need to be developed while “living and learning among us.”
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