Honda has developed a robotic hand capable of highly dexterous movements — one that can grasp a screw measuring just 1.6 millimeters in diameter, rotate it and insert it into a screw hole, and lift objects weighing up to 5 kilograms — marking a return to robotics with a new industrial focus after retiring its iconic ASIMO humanoid, Kyodo reported via The Mainichi on August 13.
Built on ASIMO's DNA
The four-fingered hand uses tactile sensors that detect the shape of objects and a newly developed drive system — which Honda has filed a patent application for — that bends like a willow while still delivering force efficiently, according to Honda engineer Yoshiike. The company says the mechanism has survived more than 450,000 durability-test cycles, including 24,000 cycles lifting a 5kg weight, reaching a practical level where it can work like a human. Engineers who worked on ASIMO, retired in 2022 after concerns about unexpected interactions with people, contributed to the program along with Honda's Avatar Robot, conceived as a remotely operated physical extension of a human operator.
Targeting Labor Shortages
Honda plans to commercialize the hand in the early 2030s for manufacturing, aiming to help automate factory work as labor shortages intensify, and will begin full-scale field testing at its Yorii factory in Saitama Prefecture, where the robot will sort large volumes of parts. Honda also plans to launch a joint research project with RIKEN during fiscal 2026 to accelerate its Physical AI work — technology that would let robots autonomously learn tasks.
Related Articles
Unitree Lists on Shanghai at a $61B Valuation as 300 Chinese Robot Firms Open the World Robot Conference With a New Commercial Reality Check
Unitree priced its Shanghai IPO on August 18 at 150.8 yuan per share, raising 6.1 billion yuan and listing August 19 at roughly 61 billion yuan ($8.6 billion) — the first mainland humanoid robot maker to trade publicly. The conference opens August 20 in Beijing with 300 companies and 2,000 exhibits, and the World Humanoid Robot Games from August 22–26 will test whether the robots can earn their keep.
Unitree's 'Superman' Humanoid Posts a 2-Meter Standing Jump and a 12.66 m/s Sprint Before Listing on the Shanghai Exchange on August 19
Unitree Robotics on Monday unveiled its new humanoid 'Superman,' which performs a 2-meter vertical jump from a stand and a 12.66 m/s sprint on 0.85-meter legs — both metrics the company says exceed the standing human world records. Three days later, the company will debut on Shanghai's main board after a 6.1 billion yuan IPO.
Figure 03 Logs 30,000 BMWs at Spartanburg as Unitree IPO Reroutes Global Robotics Capital
Figure AI's third-generation humanoid robot has now worked alongside BMW's Spartanburg factory for more than 60 days, performing 24/7 logistics sorting on the same line where its predecessor Figure 02 helped assemble 30,000 vehicles — as Unitree's $904 million Shanghai IPO resets valuation benchmarks.
Comments (0)
Log in or sign up to leave a comment.
No comments yet. Be the first to share your thoughts.