Toyota-Hyundai partnership to research humanoid technology

News Story
- 31 Oct 2024 ( #1203 ) - Boston, United States
1 min read
Two motor giant join forces to research humanoid technology
Two motor giant join forces to research humanoid technology

A new research agreement aimed at accelerating the development of general purpose humanoid robots, has been announced between Toyota Research Institute (TRI) and Boston Dynamics.

TRI is the AI and automation R&D arm of Toyota Motor Corporation while Boston Dynamics was acquired by Hyundai Motor Group in 2020 and deploys highly mobile robots within a number of sectors including the warehouse-specific robot Stretch.

The research partnership will integrate TRI’s large behaviour models with Boston Dynamics electric humanoid robot Atlas.

Boston Dynamics describes Atlas as “the result of years of hardware/software co-design aimed at building the most capable humanoid platform, both in terms of physical capability and software interfaces for authoring whole-body behaviours”.

Boston Dynamics chief executive office Robert Playter says of the partnership: “There has never been a more exciting time for the robotics industry, and we look forward to working with TRI to accelerate the development of general-purpose humanoids”.

Boston Dynamics states the research team will also “conduct research to answer fundamental training questions for humanoid robots, the ability of research models to leverage whole-body sensing, and understanding human-robot interaction and safety/assurance cases”.

“The project is designed to leverage the strengths and expertise of each partner equally,” Boston Dynamics’ statement continues. “The physical capabilities of the new electric Atlas robot, coupled with the ability to programmatically command and tele-operate a broad range of whole-body bimanual manipulation behaviours, will allow research teams to deploy the robot across a range of tasks and collect data on its performance. 

“This data will, in turn, be used to support the training of advanced LBMs, utilising rigorous hardware and simulation evaluation to demonstrate that large, pre-trained models can enable the rapid acquisition of new robust, dexterous, whole-body skills.”

"Future warehouse" on show
"Future warehouse" on show 9 Jan 2025 - Las Vegas, United States - 1 min read
Robot market to grow at 24% annually
Robot market to grow at 24% annually 12 Dec 2024 - New York, NY, United States - 1 min read
Electric forklift market to grow by 10.2% annually
Electric forklift market to grow by 10.2% annually 5 Dec 2024 - Wilmington, DE, United States - 1 min read
Previously about:
Backed by Bezos, humanoid robot maker raises USD675 million News Story - 7 Mar 2024 - Sunnyvale, CA, United States - 1 min read
Robots to unload and patrol CEVA warehouse News Story - 2 Nov 2023 - Los Angeles, CA, United States - 2 min read
DHL automates with Boston Dynamics News Story - 3 Feb 2022 - Westerville, OH, United States - 1 min read
CeMAT exhibitors upbeat about technology News Story - 8 Aug 2024 - Melbourne, VIC, Australia - 10 min read
Pink forklift to raise funds for breast cancer research News Story - 23 Nov 2023 - Nashville, TN, United States - 1 min read
Hyundai CE India launches new forklift models News Story - 26 Oct 2023 - Chakan, Pune, India - 1 min read
Adaptalift picks up Hyster NZ News Story - 6 Feb 2025 - Auckland, New Zealand - 1 min read
Briefs News Story - 21 Nov 2024 - 2 min read
Autonomous forklift platform receives major funding injection News Story - 7 Nov 2024 - Union City, CA, United States - 1 min read
Do you have materials handling news? Submit your news here

PREMIUM business

Lift Technologies Inc.
Global leader - manufactures masts, carriages, sideshifters & fork positioners

This April, Forkliftaction will publish an in-depth feature report on the latest innovations in materials handling attachment design.

Do you have expertise in this field? 
Feature contribution is a unique opportunity to share your knowledge in a widely read and respected editorial report. 

Contributor sign-up ENDS FEBRUARY 20thcontact us today to secure your participation!

Words of support …

After advertising with Forkliftaction.com, we got many enquiries regarding interest to be our distributor. Mostly from Europe and USA but including a few in ASEAN. We feel that the advertisement was useful and good for market expansion.

Lawrence Xu, Assistant Sales Manager - Resonac Asia Pacific Pte Ltd.

Are you recruiting? Find your ideal candidate among a diverse range of materials handling professionals:

Forkliftaction's JOB MARKET

This April, Forkliftaction will publish an in-depth feature report on the latest innovations in materials handling attachment design.

Do you have expertise in this field? 
Feature contribution is a unique opportunity to share your knowledge in a widely read and respected editorial report. 

Contributor sign-up ENDS FEBRUARY 20thcontact us today to secure your participation!

PREMIUM business

Ningbo Ruyi Joint Stock Co., Ltd.
Manufacturer of forklifts, power stackers & pallet trucks.

Are you recruiting? Find your ideal candidate among a diverse range of materials handling professionals:

Forkliftaction's JOB MARKET

PREMIUM business

MAXAM Tire, Inc.
Simplify your productivity with MAXAM's range of performance material handling tires, designed with the latest EcoPoint3 technology.

Are you recruiting? Find your ideal candidate among a diverse range of materials handling professionals:

Forkliftaction's JOB MARKET

This April, Forkliftaction will publish an in-depth feature report on the latest innovations in materials handling attachment design.

Do you have expertise in this field? 
Feature contribution is a unique opportunity to share your knowledge in a widely read and respected editorial report. 

Contributor sign-up ENDS FEBRUARY 20thcontact us today to secure your participation!