OpenAI disbanded the robotics department. Then, brought back. Now, through a social media post from its hardware director and a newly published job description, OpenAI is revealing more about its plans for the revived team. In a post at X on Friday, Caitlin Kalinowski, who joined OpenAI last November to lead hardware from its AR glasses division Meta, said that OpenAI will develop its own robots – complete with a suite of custom sensors. In the post, Kalinowski highlighted a list of new OpenAI robotics projects with additional information. According to the listing, OpenAI’s robotics team will focus on “general-purpose,” “adaptive,” and “versatile” robots that can function with human-like intelligence in “dynamic,” “real-world” settings. OpenAI plans to create new sensors and computing elements for robotics, which will be supported by AI models developed internally by the company. “Working across the entire stack of models, we combine cutting-edge hardware and software to explore the various form factors of robots,” says one listing. “We strive to perfect the capabilities of high-level AI with the physical constraints of a physical robotics platform.” One such listing suggests that OpenAI aims to hire contract workers to test robot prototypes. Others suggest that the company’s robots may even have limbs. Information recently reported that OpenAI has explored creating its own humanoid robots. Whatever form it takes, the OpenAI robot will — if all goes according to plan — reach “full-scale production” one day, one description reads. OpenAI seems bullish on the effort. In another listing, the company said it was looking for an engineer with “experience designing mechanical systems intended for high volume (1M+).” Robotics is a hot commodity. The sector raised more than $6.4 billion from VCs last year, according to Crunchbase, reflecting interest in a technology with seemingly endless applications. Companies like Bright Machines and Collaborative Robotics, which develop software and systems for manufacturing plants, seem to be finding a niche. So have companies like Carbon Robotics, which makes AI-enabled weeding robots, and Bear Robotics, which makes mobile robots that can carry trays and packages. Humanoid robots have attracted the most publicity. X1 and Figure, both of which have OpenAI support, attempt to create general-purpose robots that move more or less like humans. The challenge is daunting, but the company claims that technology has reached a point where mass-produced humanoid robotic systems are a realistic short-term goal. Many of the disappointments in the recent history of robotics suggest that it will be easier said than done. Robots aren’t the only hardware projects OpenAI is working on. Legendary Apple product designer Jony Ive confirmed last year that he is collaborating with OpenAI on new devices, and OpenAI is said to be designing custom chips to run AI models. TechCrunch has an AI-focused newsletter! Sign up here to get it in your inbox every Wednesday.
