Robots

What are the benefits of growing living tissue in a lab and fusing it to a robotic body? This Fw:Thinking video explores our cyborg future.

By Laurie L. Dove

A robot to simulate mudskipper locomotion gives scientists a look into the success of the first land vertebrate ancestors, and points to our future on other planets.

By Jesslyn Shields

For the first time, Israeli researchers have developed a system that lets a human use brain waves to control nanobots in a cockroach. How could that help your health?

By Patrick J. Kiger

And someday soft-bodied bots like this could slither in and out of your belly and revolutionize biomedical technology.

By Robert Lamb

While the recent robotic lethal force by police in Dallas may be shocking, experts say it's legal, and we're likely to see it happen again.

By Patrick J. Kiger

Not surprisingly, there aren't a lot of volunteers for doctors to practice manual prostate exams on. Enter the robotic rectum. We like to call it a robum.

By Kate Kershner

Parking tickets are a pain. Chatbots can be too. But that hasn't stopped one programmer from creating a bot to help overturn thousands of tickets.

By Jonathan Strickland

There's more to replacing human riders than just using cool tech, as the advancement helps solve a serious human rights issue.

By Chris Opfer

Any guesses as to what it was, if not some grad student?

By Jonathan Strickland

In their new footage of Atlas, Boston Dynamics isn't just picking on a robot. They’re demonstrating mastery of some of the most difficult issues in robotics.

By Lauren Vogelbaum

Unlike many other industries, construction hasn't yet been revolutionized by automation. But pretty soon, robotic workers may do everything but tote a lunch pail.

By Patrick J. Kiger

A robotic bartender showed how complex it can be to process a drink order — and how that could affect service robot design.

By Alia Hoyt

A lot of editors have left the crowdsourced encyclopedia over the last few years. AI could help smooth some of those editorial feathers.

By Jonathan Strickland

Humans are amazingly versatile, a trait that may wind up saving you and your job. For a little while at least.

By Joe McCormick

We think of robots as modern inventions, or maybe even retro creations meant to realize futuristic visions. But automata go back – way back – into history.

By Nathan Chandler

Some "Star Wars" fans aren't content to just watch the movies. They have to bring the tech from the screen into the real world. Get the inside scoop on how creativity, ingenuity and dedication make fan-made droids come to life.

If we're ever going to live in a world in which machines behave like people, we humans have some teaching to do. But as this writing robot attests, we're not as far away as you might think.

By William Harris

Get ready to welcome your new robotic coworker. He's careful and friendly, and he's ready to learn. And he could revolutionize the manufacturing industry.

By Bernadette Johnson

"Hahaha ... we've come to destroy your world!" Or so it must read in the chapter of the "Evil Robot Handbook" on what to say when you first encounter humans. Here are 10 robots you really don't want to mess with.

By Patrick J. Kiger

A robot, at its simplest, is a machine that can perform tasks normally undertaken by people. But when 'bots are too similar to their human creators, they become unsettling. Why is that, exactly?

By Bernadette Johnson

Got $15? You could build a Kilobot. Got $150? You could build 10 of these small bots, which might make you a robot master.

By Marianne Spoon

So you like to complain about your demonic boss, moronic co-workers and fancy company coffee machine that never, ever works? You need to zip it and meet these 10 hard-working bots. They could tell you stories.

By Robert Lamb

Full-size robotic mannequins give birth to robotic babies every day in medical training facilities. How do these mommy mimics prep students for the real deal?

By Craig Haggit

Robots continue to work their way into every aspect of our lives, but these advancements aren't self-sustaining. The fields of robotics, engineering and science depend on a steady pipeline of young minds. And that's where FIRST comes in.

By Marshall Brain & Robert Lamb

Break things down to the original Latin and the term "manufacturing" is literally a matter of using your hands to make things. These days, those hands often aren't human. So how are robots remaking our world?

By Robert Lamb