Preorders for the Microduck robots have passed 20,000 units, according to Hugging Face's Clem Delangue. The waddling, open source robots went viral after a video showed Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang playing with them during a keynote at the GTC Berlin conference. The robots can sit, nap, and somersault on voice command. They are expected to be delivered in time for Christmas. Pollen Robotics produces the devices, and Hugging Face acquired the company in 2025. Nvidia bought Hugging Face in September.
AI agents left to explore a virtual island with no set task began inventing challenges for themselves, MIT researchers report. Thirteen agents, each running on Claude Opus 4.7, spent 30 hours on a simulated desert island. Agents that had played generally outperformed identical agents that had never explored the island when later given specific challenges. Six agents discovered they could throw a block farther by letting go mid-jump, a feature the researchers had not intended. The researchers see unguided exploration as a possible way to build skills for future robots.
Robots at the 2026 World Humanoid Robot Games in China set new records, including a 100-metre sprint in 8.64 seconds and a 2.88-metre high jump. The advancements include onboard neural processing units and lighter materials. Meanwhile, a Melbourne startup has developed a biological computer using human brain cells on a silicon chip, capable of learning and adapting like a human brain.
AU Now app
Your suburb’s news, alerts and Shorts — in one app
Alerts, Shorts and your saved stories — free on Google Play.
Amazon operates more than one million robots in its warehouses, more than any other organisation. The company also employs more than 1.5 million full-time and part-time human workers. Amazon says its robots take on the most dangerous tasks, but a 2025 study found robotic fulfilment centres had fewer severe injuries and more strain-related injuries. Researchers linked this to a faster pace of work set by robots. Amazon says it has created new technician roles, while internal documents reported by The New York Times suggest the robotics push could reduce future hiring.
Würth Australia plans to install a robotic automated storage system at its 10,080 square metre warehouse in Yatala, expected to be operational from August 2027. Robots will travel on rails above a grid of closely stacked bins, retrieving products and delivering them to picking stations. Chief executive Serge Oppedisano said the investment aims to process orders faster and more accurately. Dematic is supplying the system and its warehouse-control software. The Yatala system will be followed by a larger facility in Keysborough, Victoria, in December of the same year.
