@WilliamVerst spoke at TechWolf AI Day in Belgium. Here's what he shared about where physical AI actually stands today 🧵
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He walked through the state of the art: where the field actually stands today and what’s next. It was good to see everyone engaging and pushing the field forward.
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At UMA, we are building general-purpose mobile and humanoid robots safe by design. We believe that knowledge shared is important.
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Tl;dr After 10+ years pushing the boundaries of RL at @GoogleDeepMind , @Google Brain and then Gemini, I’m looping back to startup mode and joining @UMA_Robots to push the frontier of human-centric robotics. (1/4)🧵
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I'm joining @UMA_Robots as a Research Scientist. Over the past 10 years, I've had the chance to contribute to robot learning from different angles. 🧵 1/5
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New robot friend to play with :)
One of the first AgiBot X2 humanoid robots just landed in our lab 🤖 I like its articulated neck, back handle, battery location, anthropomorphic wrist and white soft cover in a sort of Polyurethane foam. Impressive delivery speed and support from the @AGIBOTofficial team!
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We’re on the brink of a transformative increase in robotic capabilities thanks to cutting-edge AI techniques and novel hardware designs replicating human-level dexterity. UMA’s breakthroughs in mobile and humanoid robots are unlocking a market that is today worth $250B+ yearly.
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So happy to be working with William, ex-Tesla Optimus like myself 🚀 William brings a solid expertise. He was previously Thermal & Chassis Analytics lead.
I recently moved from @Tesla_AI to @UMA_Robots. 🧵(1/5)
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I recently moved from @Tesla_AI to @UMA_Robots. 🧵(1/5)
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At UMA, we are focused on pushing the frontier of AI for robotics, and applying it at scale.
robotics labs and startups list draft - which ones am i missing, and which categorizations are terrible and need updating? labs - pi (most people felt like this was the best team on the research side. also more of a general foundation model company, very ambitious.) - also tesla (but xai is making the models?) - gdm robotics - uma - nvidia robotics - intrinsic - rai institute, kind of - genesis ai - general intuition - generalist - dyna - skild ai for science incl lab automation - periodic labs - prometheus - lila sciences - futurehouse (tbd) - medra industrial - halcyon - boston dynamics (hyundai) - unitree - agibot - ubtech - amazon robotics - also tesla - also dyna - dynatronics - stealth - sanctuary - agility - covariant (acq) - humanoid - figure - apptronik robots for homes - 1x - also tesla - prosper - sunday - matic - bot company product - orchard robotics (farming) - path ai (manufacturing) - ironsite (construction) different axes to look at robotics labs - precustomer vs post customer - manufacturing vs home automation vs something else - specialist vs generalist - simulation training vs real world training - lab vs product focused thanks to friends who suggested companies and ways to improve organizations which am i missing, and which categorizations need updating
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Paris is widely recognized as a world leading AI hub, and AI is accelerating robots capability and intelligence. With 823,500+ scientists and engineers, a new wave of founders and AI experts, it's no surprise that AI for robotics companies like UMA are starting in Paris!
Paris loves robots! 🫶🏼 ... and of course, vice versa! What is the first thing that comes to mind when you think of Paris? Probably warm croissants and the Eiffel Tower glittering at night. What if I tell you, that it should be robotics? 🤯 Paris is a great place to launch a robotics startup because it mixes world-class tech talent, big startup energy, and strong public support for deep tech. First, Paris has excellent research and engineers, coming from places like Inria (a major research institute in robotics and AI) and top schools around Paris/Saclay. This matters because robotics startups often start from research and need smart people who can build “real” systems. Second, Paris is one of Europe’s biggest startup hubs thanks to STATION F (one of the world’s largest startup campuses). It gives founders access to mentors, partners, and lots of investors, which makes it easier to meet the right people fast. Third, France is unusually strong in government-backed deep-tech funding through programs like French Tech 2030 and support from Bpifrance. Robotics takes time and money (prototypes, hardware, testing), so this kind of support is a big advantage. Here's the landscape of robotics companies in Paris: → Genesis AI is a physical-AI lab building generalist robots + robotics foundation models, and launched with $105M funding. → @StanleyRobotics builds robotic “valet parking” systems that autonomously move and park cars. → @UMA_Robots is building general-purpose mobile/humanoid robots for industrial and real-world tasks. → @LeRobotHF (@huggingface) is an open-source robotics stack with datasets, and models to lower the barrier to robot learning, they also have @pollenrobotics in their portfolio. → @EnchantedTools builds friendly humanoid robots (e.g., Mirokaï) for service environments and raised ~$17M seed. → Fuzzy Logic Robotics makes a platform to quickly program/deploy industrial robots and raised €2.5M seed. → @in_bolt builds real-time 3D vision guidance for industrial robotic arms and raised ~$16–17M Series A. → @heex_io builds “smart data” software that captures only the most useful edge data to improve AI systems and raised €6M seed. → @WandercraftHQ builds advanced robotic exoskeletons for mobility/rehab (and humanoid robotics R&D) and has $75M total funding. → SoftBank Robotics UK Ltd (EMEA HQ) develops and commercializes service robots like Pepper and NAO for customer interaction and education. → Galam Robotics builds modular warehouse storage automation robots/systems and raised €10M - Series A. → Exwayz builds GPS-free 3D localization / SLAM software for autonomous robots and raised €1M. → @phospho_ai (YC W24) builds tools/software to easily connect, control, and train AI models on real robots (“brains for robots”). → General Robotics builds industrial robotics solutions for automation and integration. → Gobano Robotics develops AI-powered robots to automate dexterous industrial tasks and raised ~€3M pre-seed. → Marso Robotics builds brownfield-ready warehouse companion robots to automate hard manual logistics tasks. → @DeplaceAI provides data + semantic guidance that turns large-scale demonstrations into training signal for robotics/physical AI. I'm aware that there might be companies missing, and the map is not completed! More in comments... ~~ ♻️ Join the weekly robotics newsletter, and never miss any news → ziegler.substack.com
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UMA retweeted
I'm thrilled to announce that YC will be visiting Europe's no. 1 university - Imperial College London - on Jan 28th Get your ticket here: events.ycombinator.com/yc-im… (although it pains me to say that as an Oxford alum 😭)
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Robotique : des anciens de Tesla, Google DeepMind et Hugging Face lancent une startup soutenue par Xavier Niel, Yann LeCun et Nico Rosberg. Bravo @RemiCadene ! Et longue vie à @UMA_Robots ! #humanoid #robots #GeneralPurpose 🦾🤖 maddyness.com/2025/12/08/rob…
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UMA retweeted
@UMA_Robots, la statup robotique made in Paris ! 🦾 Fondée par d’anciens de Tesla, Google DeepMind & Hugging Face Soutenue par Xavier Niel, Yann LeCun et Nico Rosberg ! #Robotique #Deeptech #Europe
Humanity is at a turning point. I am launching UMA to build general-purpose mobile and humanoid robots from Europe. Proud to start with people I admired for years, and grateful for all your support! Reach out to us @UMA_Robots ❤️
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Nous (@zml_ai) avions d'abord lancé Neon Noir avec @DrysdaleVC et @UMA_Robots. Alors quand @medjawii et JB Kempf (@videolan) me parlent de créer nouveau média, je saute direct. Introducing À La French. Il y a eu la french-tech, maintenant c'est Tech, À La French. 👇
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Hardware is "hard". That's why the success of the first Paris Hardware Meetup last night feels like a strong signal for the french robotics scene 🦾🇫🇷🇪🇺 A steady stream of builders lining up to pitch their projects + high-quality guest speakers: Steven Palma (@LeRobotHF, @HuggingFace), @RemiCadene (CEO, @UMA_Robots), Aurélien Cord (CTO, @StanleyRobotics), Roch Molléro (CTO, Gobano Robotics). More of this!
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Nouvel Acteur dans le monde de la robotique et de l'IA @UMA_Robots est une entreprise qui conçoit des robots mobiles et humanoïdes polyvalents, dotés d’une IA avancée et d’une dextérité proche de l’humain, pour accompagner l’évolution économique et societale de demain. 🇫🇷🇫🇷🇫🇷 Affaire a suivre :)
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Thank you @Drysdale for backing our vision!
Meet @UMA_Robots, the European startup building humanoid robots to revolutionize the industrial sector and beyond (ft. @RemiCadene, @romaindillet) #robots #ai #deeptech
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Knowing Remi, UMA is going to be special. 🦾 The future of 🇪🇺 robotics is in really good hands. 👾
What does UMA mean? UMA (hUMAnism) is an opportunity to bring together global visionaries driven by the desire to make a meaningful impact through cutting-edge technology. Why do we start in Paris? @Paris is one of the world’s leading AI hubs and is at the heart of Europe: a historic industrial market, craving for automation. Also, all my Silicon Valley friends love Paris. It's the perfect place to start!
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I’m joining UMA as a Founding Research Scientist. Already, LLMs broaden what robots can do and improve their robustness in the real world. General-purpose robots are coming. Our job is now to find the best path. Follow our journey at @UMA_Robots Join us uma.bot/
Humanity is at a turning point. I am launching UMA to build general-purpose mobile and humanoid robots from Europe. Proud to start with people I admired for years, and grateful for all your support! Reach out to us @UMA_Robots ❤️
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