United Kingdom

Hesai Technology has announced plans to unveil a new mini 3D lidar model at the upcoming Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2025 in Las Vegas. The announcement highlights the company’s ongoing focus on advancing lidar technology for industrial and robotic applications. Hesai will showcase its latest innovation during a press conference on January 7 at CES, where it will also provide live demonstrations of the product’s features.

Nauticus Robotics, specializing in autonomous subsea robotics, has concluded a subsea field inspection project for a second global oil and gas client in the Gulf of Mexico. The project utilized the company’s flagship underwater vehicle, the Aquanaut Mark 2, and involved several days of visual inspections of subsea assets. The effort sought to demonstrate the technology’s alignment with the client’s subsea technology roadmap.

The UK Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has announced the winners of the Unicorn Kingdom Pathfinder Awards (UKPA), a program designed to spotlight and support high-potential technology scale-ups across four innovative categories: artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, connected and automated mobility, and digital commerce. Among the winners, Bottobo emerged as the recipient in the connected and automated mobility category, recognized for its groundbreaking work in autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) and software platforms that enhance industrial operations in warehouses and distribution centers.

A review paper published in Science Robotics explores the concept of the “sense of self” in humans and examines how robots can serve as tools to investigate this complex phenomenon. The interdisciplinary study brings together perspectives from cognitive robotics, psychology, and psychiatry, with contributions from Agnieszka Wykowska of the Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia (IIT) in Italy, Tony Prescott of the University of Sheffield in the UK, and Kai Vogeley of the University of Cologne in Germany.

Liz Upton, Co-Founder of Raspberry Pi, has been appointed Chair of the Board at BOW, a robotics software company based in Sheffield, England. Upton, who co-founded Raspberry Pi in 2008 and served as Chief Marketing Officer, played a central role in the company’s growth, including the sale of over 60 million units globally and its recent public listing on the London Stock Exchange.

Muddy Machines has announced its acquisition of key assets and intellectual property from Fox Robotics, including its logistics robot platform designed for farm operations. This move strengthens Muddy Machines’ portfolio in agricultural robotics and expands its ability to offer solutions tailored to horticultural needs. The logistics robot, rebranded as “Squirrel,” will complement the company’s existing product, “Sprout,” a robotic platform for precision agriculture in field crops.

Renesas Electronics Corporation, a global supplier of semiconductor solutions, has introduced the RZ/T2H microprocessor (MPU), designed to enhance performance in industrial equipment. The RZ/T2H is the company’s highest-performing MPU to date, combining advanced application processing capabilities with real-time control to meet the demands of industrial robots, programmable logic controllers (PLCs), motion controllers, and other industrial systems.

Sunmei Hotels Group, a major player in the Chinese hospitality industry, has announced its expansion into Indonesia as part of its broader international growth strategy. The company made the announcement during the China Hotel Overseas Investment Conference held on November 26, 2024, in Qingdao, China. At the event, Sunmei introduced its international business division, Sunmei Group International (SGI), and unveiled three new hotel brands—SHANKEE, PENRO, and LANOU.

The global industrial machine vision market is projected to grow by USD 5.22 billion from 2024 to 2028, achieving a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.45%, according to a report by Technavio. This growth is driven by operational cost reductions enabled through advanced process control technologies, alongside increasing adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) and the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) in manufacturing. These innovations are enhancing automation and productivity across multiple industries.

Hyundai Motor Company and Kia Corporation have announced plans to commercialize their new wearable robotic device, the X-ble Shoulder, at the Wearable Robot Tech Day event in Seoul, South Korea. Developed by the companies’ Robotics LAB, the X-ble Shoulder is designed to improve industrial efficiency and alleviate musculoskeletal strain by assisting with overhead work. Commercial deliveries of the device are slated to begin in the first half of 2025.