This startup is betting India’s gig economy can train the world’s robots

Human Archive, a startup founded by Berkeley and Stanford researchers, is paying gig workers in India to wear camera-equipped caps and sensor devices to collect the real-world physical training data that AI and robotics labs are racing to acquire.

The Future of Physical AI Isn’t Smarter Robots, It’s Smarter Interfaces
The Future of Physical AI Isn’t Smarter Robots, It’s Smarter Interfaces

This sponsored article is brought to you by Wetour Robotics.A field technician on a wind turbine, harness clipped, both hands on a wrench, needs to send a command to the diagnostic device hanging at her belt. A logistics worker on a loading dock, glov…

Korea’s biggest manufacturers back Config, the TSMC of robot data

Samsung, Hyundai and LG just bet on the startup that wants to be robotics’ data backbone.

In Japan, the robot isn’t coming for your job; it’s filling the one nobody wants

Driven by labor shortages, Japan is pushing physical AI from pilot projects into real-world deployment.

Nomadic raises $8.4 million to wrangle the data pouring off autonomous vehicles

The company turns footage from robots into structured, searchable datasets with a deep learning model.

Alphabet-owned robotics software company Intrinsic joins Google

Nearly five years after graduating into an independent Alphabet company, Intrinsic is moving under Google’s domain.

Zanskar thinks 1 TW of geothermal power is being overlooked

Zanskar has raised $115 million to find about a dozen geothermal resources that could help power the grid throughout the U.S. West.

Ethernovia raises $90M as investors rush to fund ‘physical AI’

The automotive-focused company is looking to expand its Ethernet-based processors to fields like robotics.

TechCrunch Mobility: ‘Physical AI’ enters the hype machine

Welcome back to TechCrunch Mobility, your hub for all things “future of transportation.” 

Inside CES 2026’s “physical AI” takeover

After years of chatbots and image generators, AI is finally leaving the screen. At CES 2026, that shift became impossible to ignore.  The annual tech showcase in Las Vegas was dominated by “physical AI” and robotics, from Bos…