The Download: AI roadblocks for humanoids and portable rubber dams

What happened

AI breakthroughs in robotics won’t change your life any time soon The hype around humanoid robots is reaching fever pitch. They argue that such assumptions minimize the challenges of using an intelligence built on language and images to master the infinite variability of the physical world.

They also point out that conflating humanoids with so-called generalist machines is misleading. Across robotics labs, tensions have emerged over whether current forms of AI are all that’s needed to perfect all-purpose humanoids or whether an entirely new path is required.

Read the full story on what it will take to build truly general-purpose robots . 10 Climate Tech Companies to Watch: WaveSave and its portable rubber dam WaveSave is one of MIT Technology Review’s 10 Climate Tech Companies to Watch 2026 , available exclusively to subscribers .