Embodied AI unveils AIR humanoid robot for shared factory work

Swiss robotics company Embodied AI has unveiled its AIR humanoid robot for work alongside factory staff, with manufacturer testing already underway, according to IEN. The company says it has signed contracts with major OEMs globally and is beginning to plan scaled production. AIR targets repetitive manual tasks that change too frequently for conventional automation, rather than a fixed production routine. Embodied AI says the robot took nine months to develop from research into hardware.

The design puts motors, gearboxes and electronics in the torso, using a tendon driven architecture that the company says leaves the arms carrying almost no mass and allows them to give way on contact. AIR uses wheels rather than legs, a choice Embodied AI attributes to the stability advantages of wheels on flat factory floors. The engineering emphasis is on manipulation and contact behavior, not bipedal mobility. Embodied AI says AIR is designed under ISO/TS 15066:2016, with CE marking planned for 2027. Those are distinct stages: the stated design approach is not a claim that CE marking has already been completed.

Each job begins under human control. According to the company, its own AI stack learns from recordings of every run until AIR can perform the task itself, typically within a month. That learning period still leaves an operator on hand to handle situations the robot has not encountered, so the proposed workflow retains human support after task learning. Embodied AI also says learning can be shared between robots. CEO Francesco Stella framed physical reliability as a central design requirement, saying in a statement that “Safety and reliability are non-negotiable requirements of physical AI to enter the real world at scale.” The company says AIR is now being tested with global manufacturers.

Source: Design and Development Today