🤖 Robot Monk Debuts

Good Morning, Roboticists!

When motion becomes programmable and presence becomes scalable, robotics stops being a category.

Robot Monk Debuts in Kyoto

TL;DR: Scientists at Kyoto University unveiled Buddharoid, a humanoid robot priest built on a Unitree G1 platform and powered by “BuddhaBot-Plus,” a ChatGPT-based system trained on Buddhist scriptures. Led by Professor Seiji Kumagai, the robot bows, prays, and offers spiritual advice at temple events, addressing Japan’s aging clergy crisis and sustaining religious practices.

Robots Sort Smart Textiles

TL;DR: Researchers at Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences have launched the two-year ReSiST-AR project, backed by nearly $500,000 in ERDF and Lower Saxony funding, to build AI-powered robots that identify and separate smart textiles containing electronics. Using multispectral cameras, 3D sensors, and material-classification algorithms, the system aims to automate sorting, support regional recycling, and guide more recyclable product design.

Uber Debuts First Drone Delivery in Ireland

TL;DR: Uber has launched a commercial drone delivery service in Ireland in partnership with Irish operator Manna, marking its first such deployment in Europe. The service uses drones to transport small orders directly to customers, with plans to expand to more cities. Uber already operates drone deliveries in Dallas, US, with Flytrex.

NVIDIA Scales Dexterity with Human Video

TL;DR: NVIDIA’s GEAR Lab introduced EgoScale, a human-to-robot transfer framework that pretrains manipulation policies on 20,854 hours of egocentric human video before aligning them to real robots. Unlike NVIDIA’s DreamDojo world model, which simulates physics for planning, EgoScale directly trains control policies, boosting real-world task success by 54% and enabling one-shot learning for high-dexterity tasks like folding shirts and handling syringes.

Merz Visits Unitree Headquarters

TL;DR: German Chancellor Friedrich Merz visited Unitree Robotics in Hangzhou on February 26, 2026, during a two-day China trip, accompanied by about 30 senior German executives. He watched humanoid robot demonstrations, including boxing and martial arts routines, and inspected components with founder Wang Xingxing, discussing potential industrial cooperation and European market expansion.

China Tests Overhead EV Chargers

TL;DR: China is piloting ceiling-mounted robotic charging systems that glide above parked electric vehicles, automatically lowering a connector into the charging port. Designed to convert ordinary parking bays into on-demand charging spots, the mobile overhead units aim to eliminate queues, reduce infrastructure bottlenecks, and streamline park-and-charge convenience in dense urban areas.

On Running Opens Robot Shoe Factory

TL;DR: Swiss sportswear brand On Running opened a robot-powered shoe factory in Busan, South Korea, deploying 32 robots to produce up to 1,000 LightSpray shoes daily using an automated spray-on process. The move aims to reduce tariff exposure, speed delivery, and nearshore production, as On plans similar factories in the U.S. and Europe.

Drones Target Beach Plastics

TL;DR: Gerard Dooly, an engineering professor at the University of Limerick, developed a drone-and-AI system that maps plastic litter on beaches and guides volunteers via a free GPS-based app. After extensive testing across Ireland, the platform now spots plastics as small as 1cm, identifies pollution hotspots, and supports EU-backed clean-up efforts active in nine countries.

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