Here’s why SpaceX really needed to change out that part on Starship
Grid fins have been essential to the landing of 230 rockets.
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Read more: Here’s why SpaceX really needed to change out that part on Starship -
This week in robotics: Amazon’s iRobot deal hits an EU snag as new funding keeps hot drone summer rolling
Read more: This week in robotics: Amazon’s iRobot deal hits an EU snag as new funding keeps hot drone summer rollingThis week brought in good news for the robotics space in the form of new investment for nascent companies, but two established players within the space hit a snag. Amazon’s potential $1.7 billion acquisition of iRobot, which had previously been approved by the U.K.’s antitrust regulators, is now getting an extensive review by the European…
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Actuator, entertainment culture, erik engeberg, glove, health medical pharma, lacrosse glove, maohua lin, protective gear, robot, robotics, Soft Robotics, tactile sensor, Tech Industry, Tech News
Soft Robo-Glove Can Help Stroke Patients Relearn to Play Music
Read more: Soft Robo-Glove Can Help Stroke Patients Relearn to Play MusicResearchers have developed the prototype of a comfortable and flexible “soft smart hand exoskeleton,” or robo-glove, which gives feedback to wearers who need to relearn tasks that require manual dexterity and coordination, for example after suffering a…
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Life after logistics
Read more: Life after logisticsYou’ll have to forgive me, as this is going to be one of those in-between Actuator weeks. I finally took a couple of days off last week after working through the last few weekends, and today I’ve been rewarded with a throbbing migraine. Isn’t the human body magical? Either way, it’s an exciting week for…
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Actuator, ChatGPT, cmu, EPFL, Generative AI, ken goldberg, pieter abbeel, robotics, Tech Industry, techcrunch, u.c. berkeley
Pieter Abbeel and Ken Goldberg on generative AI applications
Read more: Pieter Abbeel and Ken Goldberg on generative AI applicationsI’ll admit that I’ve tiptoed around the topic a bit in Actuator due to its sudden popularity (SEO gods be damned). I’ve been in this business long enough to instantly be suspicious of hype cycles. That said, I totally get it this time around. While it’s true that various forms of machine learning and AI…
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Actuator, agility, Alphabet X, boston dynamics, Hardware, robotics, Robotics roundup, Tech Industry, wing, Zume
Winging it
Read more: Winging itOnce again, your intrepid robotics reporter finds himself in the warm embrace of the Bay. To paraphrase Mark Twain, the warmest I was ever embraced was early summer in Santa Clara. I’m writing this from a juice place in Palo Alto (living the dream), having finished a pair of back-to-back meetings nearby. This week’s big…
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Meet me at the dog run
Read more: Meet me at the dog runYou’ll have to forgive me, I spent most of the morning thinking and writing about VR. In the lead-up to Apple’s expected headset announcement at WWDC next week, I did a one-person crash course into the world of extended reality, from its birth in the laboratories in the ’50s and ’60s to the current crop…
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Actuator, AI, apptronik, automate 2023, Fetch, Hardware, robotics, Tech Industry, Zebra Technologies
Motor City mechatronics
Read more: Motor City mechatronicsA number of native Detroiters have asked me what I think about their city so far. The simple answer is that I don’t feel qualified to offer much insight yet. I’ve been here for roughly three days as I write this, and I haven’t seen all that much of the city. Ask me what I…
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Actuator, figure, Hardware, Intrinsic, robotics, Robotics roundup, Sony Innovation Fund, Tech Industry
Figuring it all out
Read more: Figuring it all outFirst and most importantly: I finally hit Delta Silver Medallion for 2024, courtesy of last week’s trip back to the Bay. Like most of you, I came down with a bad case of wanderlust during the lockdown years and couldn’t wait to get back on the road. Suddenly I’m back to pre-pandemic work levels of…
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The life and death of a robot vacuum
Read more: The life and death of a robot vacuumI’m heading back to the South Bay next week, thanks to Google I/O, which is coming back to the Shoreline Amphitheater. I honestly don’t expect much of anything related to this beat, though AI is going to be all over that thing. That’s hardly a new phenomenon, of course — previous developer conferences have showcased…
