Ex-Tesla engineer plans AI robot to replace European retirees in workforce - Washington Examiner
More Technology # Ex-Tesla engineer plans AI robot to replace European retirees in workforce By Victoria Baeza Garcia Published July 7, 2026 4:05pm ET Add Washington Examiner on Google --- Ex-Tesla engineer Remi Cadene unveiled plans to build an AI robot to...
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- The most recent coverage of humanoid robots shows a surge of breakthroughs and commercial launches.
- In South Korea, Holiday Robotics announced a record‑breaking 155 billion‑won Series A round to accelerate its manufacturing‑focused wheeled humanoid “FRIDAY,” a 176 cm, 115 kg platform with 64 degrees of freedom, tactile sensors and autonomous‑driving capabilities, aiming to ship roughly 1,000 units per year by 2027.
- In the United States, 1X unveiled a new hand for its Neo home robot that matches or exceeds human performance, featuring 25 actuated degrees of freedom, tendon‑driven motion, force‑transparent low‑gear ratios and IP68‑sealed tactile fingertips, allowing tasks such as pouring tea, sorting grapes and sign‑language communication.
- Apptronik opened its expanded Robot Park in Austin, a data‑collection facility for training its Apollo humanoid robots in partnership with Google DeepMind.
- AGIBOT rolled out the A3 humanoid in Europe, introduced a UK robot‑as‑a‑service model, and celebrated the production of its 15 000th unit, the G2 industrial‑grade robot.
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Ex-Tesla engineer plans AI robot to replace European retirees in workforce
By Victoria Baeza Garcia
Published July 7, 2026 4:05pm ET
Add Washington Examiner on Google
Ex-Tesla engineer Remi Cadene unveiled plans to build an AI robot to automate industrial processes amid a decline in the working-age population, targeting Europe first.
The humanoid robot, called “Northstar,” will be used in manufacturing plants, logistics warehouses, and homes, Cadene revealed at the Machina Summit on Tuesday in Paris, France.
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Cadene is himself the CEO and co-founder of a Paris-based startup called UMA, which develops general-purpose AI and humanoid robots. Before founding the startup, he worked on Elon Musk’s driver-assistance system, Autopilot, and the Optimus humanoid robot.
UMA aims to showcase a proof of concept by the end of the year, using wheels rather than legs, and is already in talks with 50 potential customers about use cases for the AI robot.
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Youtube “Labor costs are very high and, given the demographic trends, there will be significant demand,” he said, in reference to the continent’s aging population.
The lightweight robot is expected to weigh 40 kilograms (88 pounds) so it can safely interact with humans, and will be trained to use real-time learning technology, learning a skill by watching a demo and eventually improving at it, according to Bloomberg.
“This is how a child learns to tie his shoelaces, first by being taught how to do it, then improving by practicing,” Cadene said.
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