autonomous

the “wolf pack” robots with all kinds of autonomous weaponry

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China has turned robotics into a state issue. In the last five-year plan, the country made clear its total commitment to autonomous robots, agentic AIthe development of your semiconductor industry and 6G as the great ‘cloud’ to give life to Physical AI. Within the technological commitment, we already knew that robot dogs were of great importance. What we didn’t expect is that they already had packs of robodogs ready to go into action. And all this under a brain that makes them work like a swarm. Robowolves. The Asian giant has been performing simulations with these robot dogs armed. The advantage of these units is that the base is the same for all, but they can be customized so that they carry whatever is needed: from weapons to sensors of all kinds. Each one weighs about 70 kilos and can carry another 25 kilos, so the versatility when it comes to having ‘extras’ for attack, reconnaissance, transportation and supplies is maximum. And they can be operated remotely by humans, but the key to the Chinese system presented by the state channel CCTV (as stated SCMP) is that they can also be under the control of a central AI. Herd. We have already mentioned that one of China’s objectives is physical AI, AI being the software that controls – the brain – and the robot the hardware that has contact with the real world -the dog-. Within a show of force, television highlights operations such as “urban cleanup” in which a pack of ‘wolves’ operates through a shared detection network that acts as a collective brain. It is an autonomous mode and decision-making is joint within the group. As in a pack of flesh and blood wolves, each one has different roles. And they have names. ‘Shadow’ is the recognition, giving information about the situation to the rest of the group. ‘Polar’ is the one that offers logistical support and ‘Bloody’, as its name suggests, is the one that can carry weapons such as grenade launchers, missile launchers and automatic rifles. What’s scarier is that the group can automatically maneuver into tactical formations thanks to that swarm control system to surround targets, block them, and ultimately open fire. One of those responsible for researching the Atlas weapons system in China pointed out that these drones “understand” the intentions of others and can execute collaborative actions even in the absence of communication signals with the command. Utility? Operate in situations where satellite signals are not available. An example of one of the ‘Polar’ Limitations. Although it may seem like science fiction – and it is – these units are not perfect. The army itself has revealed on occasion that robodogs lack armor, so they are easily shot down even with light fire. They have recognized that the idea is no longer to achieve perfection, but to advance in the demonstration that they can replace human troops with robots, minimizing casualties in the event of open conflict. There is also something more underlying: as in a pack, the strength is not in the individual, but in operating together as CCTV claims these swarms of robots can do. And another limitation (and thank goodness) is that, although robots are capable of identifying and focusing on targets autonomously, they cannot attack without human confirmation. And a ‘Bloody’ show of strength. The reports shared by CCTV indicate that the algorithms of this system allow collaborative tasks to be carried out between different types of weapons. For example, coordinating attacks between ground and aerial drones, but also guiding laser weapons. One case is an algorithm that allows robots to prioritize targets, such as neutralizing the most threatening ones first, leaving less important targets aside. And Zhang Wei, a researcher at the China Electronics Technology Group corporation, pointed out that the goal is to achieve robots with “full autonomy on a large scale”, a scenario in which many different drones operate collaboratively without human intervention, achieving objectives and making decisions in complex missions autonomously. Total commitment to robotics. As always, you have to take anything that comes from any government with a grain of salt when talking about this type of thing, since (and even more so now) propaganda is super important. However, it is undeniable that China is betting heavily on the development of robotics and that these robowolves are not a render like the ‘space destroyer’ that they showed a few weeks ago. They are already carrying out simulated missions and we have seen them in other scenarios, such as in the daily life of different firefighting units. helping carry out reconnaissance missions and firefighting. And, deep down, I can’t get out of my head how cool these things were when we saw them in the movies and how scary it is when they seem to be one step away from becoming a reality. Image | CCTV/China In Xataka | China has asked Russia for an airborne battalion and training. That can only mean one thing: they are preparing a landing

The first “autonomous” car in history dates back to 1958 and had a peculiar problem: it smelled like fish

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Nowadays, and with few exceptions such as Cybertruckautomobile design is moved by very clear trends. However, in the 1950s and in the midst of the space age, the sky was the limit. Some examples are the amazing General Motors Firebird Ihe Zündapp Janus that you don’t know if it comes or goes or the refrigerator with wheels called BMW Isetta. At that time was born the Golden Sahara IIa car truly ahead of its time. It was so far ahead that it brought driving assistance and full connectivity (of what there was). It is, in short, the grandfather of today’s smart car. A crazy repair idea. If I say George Barris you may not know who I’m talking about, but if I reveal that he is the creator of the Batmobile things change. Well, back in 1953 the car designer had a car accident with his Lincoln Capri: crashed into a hay truck and as a result, the top of the vehicle was destroyed. Probably many of us would have taken the car to the workshop or scrapyard based on the mechanic’s bill, but Barris invested a whopping $5,000 and what was left of his battered Capri (which had a 200 horsepower V8 engine) was built into the Golden Sahara. Be careful, to give you an idea of ​​the inverted grassland: in the 50s the luxurious Cadillac Eldorado It cost $7,750.. Clean slate in the form of an ultra-futuristic car. Equipment from another era. At a time when FM radio was an extra, Barris himself tells its most differential design elements: hand-molded steel panels, vertical design headlights installed in fenders and bullet-type bumpers, fins integrated into the fenders, lounge-type seat with bar furniture on the sides, a removable bubble dome for the roof. Kontinent Media …and paint of with sardines The streamlined design was finished with a two-tone 24-karat gold finish (hence its name) instead of the classic chrome and a paint that shone like a diamond. Barris was looking for a finish never seen before, so he came up with a natural way to achieve a pearlescent touch before that type of paint became popular: with fish scales. As explained the designer in an interview with Jonnie King for his “Hall of Fame Legends” series: “So Shirley and I went to the fishmonger, and I remember that the fish looked very pearly. I had the fishmongers turn all the sardines so that their bellies could be seen until I found the one with the gold. We took it, removed the scales, put it in a jar, took it to the store and mixed it with a natural cellulose clearcoat and toner lacquers. Then I gave it a base of matte white and I sprayed it on top, and it turned out a spectacular pearly gold. The only problem was that it was very difficult to smell because it smelled like fish.” An even more extravagant Golden Sahara II. In 1954 the first Golden Sahara was born and from ’56 to ’58 Barris teamed up with Jim Street and Bob Metz to give it a twist until they found the Golden Sahara II. For this second generation, Goodyear added Translucent and luminous tires to replace the conventional white band tires of the time. It is just the tip of the iceberg of a car that is surprising both on the outside and (especially) on the inside. But Metz also gave it a good facelift and modified the windshield, hood and roof of the vehicle, he put quad headlights and rear fins. And it went from having a radio and steering wheel to truly futuristic technology: with panels on the upper part of the dashboard where it housed a television, tape recorder and even a refrigerator for its bar. It is said that the total cost of the Sahara exceeded $75,000 of the time. Under the hood: ahead of its time. Jim Rote’s electronics It was what made the difference compared to the cars of that era and brought it closer to ours. The steering wheel gave way to a fighter-style central joystick and implemented voice control for tasks such as opening the doors or starting the engine. Likewise, it integrated proximity sensors in two antennas on the front bumper, so that it could brake autonomously. What happened to him. In his days of wine and roses he went to fairs like the Petersen Motorama (his debut), he appeared in ‘cinderfella‘ (1960) with Jerry Lewis, Ed Winn and Judith Anderson and also in the competition ‘I’ve got a secret‘, in 1962. But in the 60s it disappeared from the front page and was relegated to ostracism for half a century, until it returned in style and restored in the Geneva Motor Show of 2019 from the hand of Goodyear. In Xataka | Make your old stickerless car a historic vehicle. A shortcut to circulate through Madrid without fines that does not always work In Xataka | The Bugatti Veyron was a unique car. And we say “was” because Bugatti has decided to betray him with nostalgia Cover | Matti Blume

Tesla robotaxis are autonomous, except when driven by a man from Texas

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Taking a trip in an autonomous taxi is an unsettling feeling of a future that is already here. However, even if the driver’s seat is empty, we now know that sometimes there is a person at the controls who is controlling it remotely. It happened recently with Waymo and now we have learned that Tesla does it too. Self-employed, sometimes. They count in Futurism that Tesla has recognized (after being required by the US Senate) that it has human operators who can take complete control of the vehicle in certain situations. These operators are located at the headquarters in Austin, Texas, or Palo Alto, California. Exceptional situations. As explained in the letter sent to the Senate, this is “As a security measure in exceptional cases (…) as a last resort once all other available intervention actions have been exhausted.” When this remote mode is activated, the operator cannot exceed 16 kilometers per hour. For example, it is used if the vehicle is stuck on a road. Why is it important. Self-driving taxi companies like Waymo and, now, Tesla, have gone to great lengths to hide these types of remote interventions because it is a way of admitting that we are far from 100% autonomous driving. At the beginning of the year, Elon Musk boasted that their robotaxis were circulating without a safety monitor, but shortly after we learned that what they had really done was converting that safety monitor into a vehicle with a driver that followed each robotaxi. The Waymo case. The leading robotaxis company in the US was the first to recognize human intervention in driving their cars. It also happened as a result of authorities’ scrutiny of its technology. However, unlike Tesla’s system in which the human takes full control of the vehicle, in Waymo the human intervenes to guide the stuck vehicle, but does not drive it directly. The workers who carry out these interventions do so from the Philippines. Risks and criticisms. Tesla speaks of “exceptional cases”, but refused to give details about the frequency of these interventions, which for the Senate was insufficient since remote driving entails significant risks. If, for example, there is latency in the network, it would cause a delay in the remote driver’s orders and may have consequences. Tesla defends itself by arguing that revealing that information would “reveal highly sensitive trade secrets and confidential business practices” that Tesla needs to maintain its “competitive position in the autonomous vehicle industry.” Image | Xataka In Xataka | The robotaxis did not need a driver, but Waymo has ended up paying delivery drivers to close ajar doors

“Citizen surveillance and autonomous weapons deserved more deliberation” OpenAI robotics director resigns

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A week ago we were just saying that “A dead king, a king“: Anthropic passage to pure ostracism after being considered a “risk to the supply chain” of the United States practically overlapped with the announcement of the US Defense Administration agreement with OpenAI in record time. Behind the scenes: the reasons for the no from the company led by Dario Amodei and the unknown of the terms of that agreement that installs ChatGPT on the Pentagon computers. A few days later, Caitlin Kalinowski says goodbye at his position at OpenAI, citing the military use of artificial intelligence as the reason. The resignation. Caitlin Kalinowski, head of the OpenAI robotics team since November 2024, announced her departure from the company a few hours ago in publications from X and from LinkedIn. He makes it clear that his decision is about principles and not people and expresses respect for Sam Altman and the team. In his brief statement there are two lines that, in his opinion, the company did not think about enough internally: The surveillance of American citizens without judicial supervision. Autonomous weapons capable of firing without human supervision. Tap to go to the post Context. The resignation occurs in the midst of Anthropic’s departure from the Pentagon (the transition will last six months), the entry of OpenAI and in the midst of a debate about how far AI companies should go in their collaboration with the US military establishment: Anthropic stood before the Pentagon drawing strict lines on domestic surveillance and autonomous weapons. OpenAI reached an agreement with the Department of Defense to deploy its models on a classified government network in a move that has been interpreted as opportunistic. According to the company led by Altman, the agreement excludes domestic surveillance and autonomous weapons, but the damage to its reputation had already been done: thousands of people uninstalled ChatGPT by way of cancellation. Why it is important. The goodbye of Caitlin Kalinowski is the first public and nominative resignation from a senior position at OpenAI motivated by ethical disagreements over the military use of AI explicitly. And this sets a precedent in the industry insofar as it exposes the internal fracture in the most influential company in the sector, placing OpenAI in a delicate situation before those who use its tools, its staff and also before society. And finally, it makes more clear than ever the need to legislate on artificial intelligence and its civil and military uses. Maybe Europe is behind in the AI ​​battlebut a long time ago he set about the arduous task of establish a regulatory framework. Which Kalinowski does not say. In the comments of her post on Kalinowski does not say it clearly, but when an agreement of this magnitude has already been signed and its CEO makes it publicthere is no room for much maneuver from within: resigning with a public statement like yours is one of the few pressure maneuvers left to exert. Consequences. For OpenAI, the pressure is growing and it faces more departures and more cancellations if it does not clearly show what its red lines are in a credible and verifiable way: the militarization of AI is something we are experiencing in real time. For the AI ​​industry, it is more fuel on the fire of the self-regulation debate. And Anthropic gains reputation, although in the short term it has lost an important agreement and its new status may put its existence in check. In Xataka | The US has decided to shoot itself in the foot and destroy one of the best AI companies in the country In Xataka | Sam Altman says he’s terrified of a world where AI companies believe themselves to be more powerful than the government. It’s just what you’re building Cover | Caitlin Kalinowski

A global trucker crisis is on the horizon. China’s solution: autonomous truck caravans

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The global freight transport market is facing a labor crisis. This is what the data says, pointing to a shortage of goods in Europe, North America and China. But also in Australia or Argentina. In search of solutions, Chinese companies are already proposing a way out: autonomous truck caravans. Shortage. 75% of the goods They are transported by road. 85% of the transport of perishable products opt for the same type of route. Although the transport of goods by train increases, the truck continues to be the alternative that best combines flexibility with contained costs and high efficiency for most companies. But these contained costs aim to disappear. According to the International Road Transport Organization (IRU) there is a global shortage of 3.6 million truck drivers. It is more or less 7% of the total places that are active right now. And the prospects are even worse. Road to retirement. The sector has a problem: retirement. A significant number of truck drivers are very close to slamming the door on their cabins. In Europe alone it is estimated that, in this year 2026, there will be a gap between supply and demand of one million truck drivers. And the problem is that the increase in online commerce will only aggravate this situation. By 2030, they believe that there will be a lack of 11% of the places necessary to cover the volume of work that would be necessary to effectively transport all the goods that will be put on the road. This situation is, according to IRUespecially serious in China where they estimate that before the end of the decade 19% of the truck drivers who are currently working will have retired. Let them go alone. With these perspectives on the table, Pony AIa company specialized in artificial intelligence that has your own autonomous car service in China and that has reached a agreement with Stellantis to advance joint developments for Europe, has announced that it has an autonomous truck solution to advance in a caravan. The idea is that the trucks in advance in a 1+4 convoy. Thus, the first of the vehicles is driven by a human and the four remaining autonomous trucks travel completely autonomously, guided by the first but applying level 4 autonomy. That is, trucks can circulate without anyone at the wheel. 2026. The project has a date: this year. Pony AI announced a few weeks ago a collaboration agreement with Sany, a vehicle production company for industrial work or the transportation of goods that will provide the hardware. The digital brain is provided by Pony AI. Together they believe they can have these self-driving truck caravans ready this year. If they are mass produced, they would be the first in the world to manufacture 5G, completely autonomous and electric trucks, They boast from Sany. According to their accounts, it is a business that will reduce the cost per kilometer by 29% and that can boost the operating margin of companies by 195%. First tests. In BBC They report that China was already experimenting with autonomous trucks last year. “Of course, I was a little scared the first time I drove an autonomous truck. But, after spending a lot of time observing and testing these vehicles, I think they are actually quite good and safe,” said one of the truck drivers who have gotten behind the wheel in these tests to take control if necessary. In the video You can see how the trucks circulated alone between Beijing and Tianjin, a route of more than 100 kilometers. It explains that the driver takes control in the first stages of the journey and must be seated to take the wheel at specific times. However, most of the trip is made without making any decisions and with four trucks behind him. Experience. Sany is not inexperienced in this sector either. The company, in addition to electric trucks for Pony AI, has also worked with industrial use vehicles such as trucks to transport minerals. In this videoFor example, a mine is shown in which an operator controls an excavator remotely. With it, it fills trucks with the extracted materials and these, once full, move completely autonomously to transport these minerals and make room for a new vehicle that has already made the same journey previously. A way of working that is also being studied Huawei. Photo | Pony AI In Xataka | Spain and Europe have a problem: they move 85% of their products in trucks and they are missing 3 million truck drivers

Uber Eats abandons autonomous riders after the fight with Work

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Uber Eats had been moving for some time within the perimeter of a rule that the Government promoted to redefine the labor market fit for home delivery in Spain. That standard, known as ‘Rider Law‘, put the focus on a crack that had been at the center of the debate for years, the figure of the “false self-employed“, and has been pushing the sector towards employee models or towards schemes in which the employment relationship is channeled through third parties. In this context, the fact that the platform now announces its intention to stop working with self-employed delivery drivers is not only an operational adjustment, it is a movement that contributes to reordering one of the great debates of the delivery. The announcement that finalizes the turn. Uber Eats has communicated that it will stop working with self-employed delivery drivers in Spain and links it to its adaptation to the current labor framework after several years of changes in its operations. The company explains that delivery drivers who still use the application as self-employed will be able to continue delivering as employees through collaborating fleets. “Uber Eats reaffirms its commitment to compliance with the Rider Law. After four years in which we have accumulated extensive experience working with expert logistics companies, and with the aim of promoting a long-term sustainable model, we have made the decision to stop collaborating with autonomous delivery drivers.” What happened on the way. To understand the scope of the movement you have to look back. Uber Eats does not reach this point from a fixed position, but after several changes of course from the approval of the ‘Rider Law’. In 2021, the platform stopped operating with freelancers and moved to a labor model based on subcontractors. One year later, in August 2022, opened the door to self-employment again and adopted a hybrid scheme in which salaried fleet delivery drivers and self-employed workers coexisted, in a context in which Glovo persisted in that model. On paper, the solution proposed by Uber Eats is clear. Delivery drivers who still use their application as freelancers will be able to continue delivering, but no longer as self-employed workers, but as employees of one of the collaborating fleets with which the platform operates. In practice, the transition from self-employed to salaried usually involves changes in the organization of work and conditions, although Uber Eats has not detailed how it will be applied in each case or deadlines for this transition. Not all delivery drivers could automatically fit into this traffic, nor is it clear how many real positions the fleets can absorb, which leaves open the possibility that some of these self-employed workers will be left out of the system. The threat of ‘the full weight of the law’. The background of this movement refers to a clash that came from behind. In October 2025, the Ministry of Labor raised the tone and waived the possibility of resorting to criminal proceedings if Uber Eats did not rectify its hiring model. The vice president and minister, Yolanda Díaz, was explicit in warning that “Uber (Eats) is not going to fool the Government of Spain, and I can already tell you that the weight of the law will fall on this company,” in reference to the use of false self-employed workers. A mirror in the sector. The Uber Eats movement does not occur in a vacuum. Glovo announced its change of model in Spain in December 2024 and operates fully with salaried delivery drivers from mid-2025while the criminal process continues against its top leader, accused of a crime against workers’ rights. Just Eat, for its part, stayed the course and persisted in its employee model. In this context, Uber Eats had remained the great exception, with a hybrid scheme that continued to combine fleets and freelancers. From now on, the focus shifts from the announcement to its actual landing. Uber Eats says it wants to put an end to pending litigation and facilitate a “fair process for everyone,” but it will be practical execution that will determine the extent of the turnaround. It remains to be seen how the transition from the self-employed to the fleets is articulated, how many delivery drivers manage to fit into that step and if the new scheme manages to dissipate the conflicts that have accompanied the sector in recent years. Images | Robert Anasch | appshunter.io In Xataka | The “absent recipient” trick: why delivery people mark your package as undelivered even if you were at home

There are already autonomous robots smaller than a grain of salt

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Robotics has been pursuing the same obsession for decades: reducing the size of machines without emptying them of intelligence. Until now, that goal had a physical limit that was difficult to cross. Above a certain threshold, making a smaller robot meant making several compromises. That just changed. A team of researchers has shown that It is possible to build an autonomous robot so tiny that it can barely be seen, but still capable of perceiving its environment, processing information, and responding without outside intervention. The development comes from researchers at the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Michigan, who have built what the team describes as the autonomous programmable robot smallest achieved so far. The device is designed to operate submerged in a fluid, and in that environment it can move and operate. The scientific article describes a body measuring approximately 210 by 340 micrometers and 50 micrometers thick. Its scale is so small that it can rest on the ridge of a fingerprint and is almost invisible to the naked eye. A complete robot on a microscopic scale. The difference compared to previous attempts is not only in the miniaturization, but in what this device theoretically manages to integrate. According to the researchers, the microrobot incorporates computing, memory, sensors, communication and locomotion systems within a single autonomous platform. Until now, these systems often relied on external equipment to process information or make decisions. In this case, the robot can execute digitally defined algorithms and modify its behavior based on what is happening around it. The main obstacle to getting here has not been conceptual, but physical. At micrometer scales, the rules change: gravity and inertia lose weight, and forces such as viscosity and drag dominate. In that environment, moving through a fluid is more like moving through thick material than swimming in water. Added to this difficulty is an even more severe restriction, energy. With power budgets around 100 nanowatts, integrating propulsion and computing at the same time had been, until now, an almost impossible compromise. Electronics designed to survive on almost no power. The solution involved rethinking the robot’s electronic architecture from scratch. The team worked with a 55 nanometer CMOS process and used subthreshold digital logic to keep consumption within a budget close to 100 nanowatts. In that space they managed to integrate photovoltaic cells for power, temperature sensors, control circuits for the actuators, an optical receiver for programming and communication, as well as a processor with memory. Locomotion is one of the most unique aspects of design. Instead of motors or appendages, the microrobot uses electric fields to induce currents in the fluid around it, moving without moving parts that could break. Its creators describe it as a system in which the robot generates its own “river” to move forward. That same minimalist logic extends to communication. The measurements you make, such as temperature, are encoded into motion sequences, a simple but effective method at this scale. Tiny robots that act together. Beyond individual behavior, the team has shown that these microrobots can synchronize and operate in groups. According to the researchers, several devices are capable of coordinating their movements and forming collective patterns comparable to schools of fish. This approach opens the door to distributed tasks, in which each unit contributes local information or action. In theory, these groups could continue to operate autonomously for months if kept charged with LED light on their solar cells, although available memory limits the complexity of programmable behaviors for now. With this platform, researchers propose a path toward more general-purpose microrobots, capable of executing tasks in difficult environments without constant supervision. On the horizon are applications that today are closer to the laboratory than to the real world, for example in biomedicine, where devices of this type could operate on body fluids. The team itself insists that this is just a first step. The advance opens a technical base, but the jump to practical uses will depend on increasing performance. Images | University of Pennsylvania and the University of Michigan In Xataka | We still don’t know if humanoid robots will be the next great technological revolution. Yes we know that China will lead it

China gives the green light to the first level 3 autonomous cars. Their goal: to be leaders in 2035

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China has given the green light to its first two passenger vehicles with capacity level 3 autonomous driving (L3). This will allow drivers to let go of the steering wheel in certain circumstances. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) announced this Monday that Changan Automobile and BAIC have received authorization to manufacture electric cars with this technology, although with geographical and speed limitations. What level 3 really means. Most current driving assistance systems in smart cars are classified as L2 or L2+, which force the driver to keep their hands on the wheel at all times. Level 3, considered “hands-off” according to the criteria of the international organization SAE, allows the vehicle to assume all dynamic driving tasks under specific conditions. However, the driver must remain alert and prepared to intervene when necessary. To put ourselves in context, level 5 would represent total autonomy, without the need for human intervention under any circumstances. The restrictions of the approved models. The model from Changan, a state-owned manufacturer based in Chongqing, will be able to navigate autonomously through urban streets and traffic at a maximum speed of 50 km/h when its assistance system is activated. For its part, the BAIC model under its Arcfox brand (the Alpha S sedan) is authorized to travel on highways and expressways at up to 80 km/h. Both vehicles, which are pure electric, will only be able to operate in specific areas: the Changan Deepal SL03 will be able to do so in certain sections of Chongqing, while the Arcfox Alpha S in specific sections of highways in Beijing that connect with the airports. Why China is accelerating now. The country is treating autonomous driving as another strategic objective, just as it did when promoting its electric vehicle industry, which is so popular abroad. The authorities have set the goal of making the country a leader in the sector by 2035. According to Zhang Yongweigeneral secretary of China EV100, two out of every three new cars sold in China this year will have Level 2 or higher autonomous driving capability. “The approvals show that the authorities are willing to deregulate the market,” says Phate Zhang, founder of CnEVPost, who anticipates that “officials are likely to take a phased approach to distributing more manufacturing licenses to other manufacturers.” The industry was already prepared. According to SCMP, several premium manufacturers have been with models ready to comply with level 3 regulations for months. Geely’s Zeekr and Seres, backed by Huawei Technologies, have designed and developed intelligent vehicles considered semi-autonomous that would comply with L3 rules, according to previous announcements. Andrew Fan, CFO of Hesai Group, the world’s largest manufacturer of lidar sensors, declared reported last month that “preparations were well underway in the Chinese auto industry for the next generation of autonomous driving capabilities, even before Beijing cleared the regulatory path.” The cost of the advanced lidar sensors needed for Level 3 ranges from $500 to $1,000 per unit, with demand rising as major Chinese manufacturers accelerate development of autonomous vehicles. Where is China compared to the West. Mercedes-Benz seems to have the advantage in this area: its Level 3 Drive Pilot system was approved by German authorities at the beginning of the year to operate at speeds of up to 95 km/h on the motorway network, marking the fastest certified system for conditional autonomous driving in a production vehicle, according to the company. Tesla continues to update its Full Self Driving system, which operates at an advanced level 2. Meanwhile, manufacturers like BMW and BYD also have models in testing for Level 3 driver assistance in Chinese cities like Beijing. What’s coming now. The MIIT has confirmed which will work with other authorities to supervise these vehicles while promoting the development of this technology in China. The two manufacturers will use the models to carry out pilot programs in assigned locations. Although the ministry has not specified when they will hit the market, technically manufacturers can begin assembling the models once they receive the green light. In addition to these two state-owned manufacturers, several robotaxis companies such as Baidu’s Apollo Go, Pony AI and WeRide They are already leading the deployment of driverless vehicles worldwide, operating at level 4, which does not require a human driver. Cover image | Wikipedia In Xataka | For the first time in 88 years, Volkswagen has crossed a red line: closing a factory in Germany

The first autonomous robot waiter in China served me. It’s nothing more than a glorified vending machine

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A few weeks ago I was in Beijing. I went to take photos with a preliminary version of the Realme GT8 Probut there was time to walk around there. I was hoping to find things that would surprise me, like the external batteries that are in every corner of the citybut I came across something unexpected: the Galbot G1. It is a humanoid robot very different from the rest of humanoid robots. Because? Because this is already working. And not in a warehouse or factorylike so many others, but in a much more demanding position: facing the public. He is tending a drinks stand in a very large shopping center. It does this without any human intervention. And… the waiters can rest easy. The robot that serves you bottles of water Before we get into the robot, let’s go with some context. Galbot is another of the many Chinese companies that They are researching robotics. They are focusing not so much on the moving parts as on the ‘brain’ of these robots: the language models connected with a vision system that allows the robot to manipulate objects in a general way. This means you can break away from pre-programmed routines to react in real time. Your brain is powered by hardware NVIDIA Jetson Thorwhich is what allows you to execute that LLM in real time, and has two keys: Navigate without the need for markers on the ground. It does not do it with legs, but with a base that gives it less flexibility, but greater autonomy and stability. Your system allows you to perceive what is around you, “understand” it, and react based on that perception. In short: thousands and thousands of dollars invested in creating a robot with one objective: serving me a bottle of water. Image | Xataka When we stumbled upon the stall, it was by chance. There was no one ordering, all the rows of bottles were intact and it was even strange. But since science doesn’t do itself, I approached, determined to buy the cheapest bottle of flavored water available to do the test. The process couldn’t be simpler: You choose product. You pay with AliPay/WeChat. The robot does its thing. You leave. The problem is that I may be defining the work of a robot that has cost a fortune, but I may also be describing the process of purchasing from a Goya vending machine. There are two differences: the robot is cooler… and it takes much longer. How much? Here it is: As a bartender, meh. In a warehouse it makes sense The truth is that my feeling was strange and the first thing I thought was “the waiters can rest assured because this is not a threat.” But I also wondered to what extent the Galbot G1 that had served me was nothing more than a proof of concept in the real world and the company’s intentions are different. And, indeed. All that technology and reasoning in real time, with perception of physical space thanks to its numerous cameras and sensors located in various parts of the body, is not there to serve me bottles of a few cents, but to carry out work in environments in which it can really be useful: logistics. Because facing acrobaticsthis G1 (because the Unitree is also a G1) is committed to demonstrating its viability in real commercial uses today. One is “light” hospitality, such as the kiosk where I bought, but also logistics in controlled spaces in the last mile. Applications targeted by Galbot It is the video demonstration just above these lines, where we see the adaptability of the Galbot when they move the boxes. The response time in which it analyzes the situation is similar to the one I saw when I ordered my little bottle, and those sales stands in some areas of China are nothing more than training, or that’s what I get the feeling, for its artificial intelligence model. The queue that was set up just when I ordered. Before it was empty. Image | Xataka For now, curiosity, a Furbyan attraction, but in certain environments, it can be very useful. As a machine vendingNo, although it attracts a lot of attention, and a good queue formed not to buy… but to see how he bought. Images | Xataka In Xataka | A robot called “Sardinator” circulated through the streets of Malaga promoting a beach bar. Until the police arrived

It already affects nine autonomous communities

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On November 7, the Spanish Agency for Food Safety and Nutrition issued an alert after detecting listeria in the canned chopped sold by DIA and manufactured by the Cárnicas Serrano company. Now he just expanded it to six more products in a case that is beginning to become much more complicated than expected. First of all: What products are involved? Chopped can thin slices: Sliced ​​packaging 150 g from the brand “Nuestra Alacena (DIA)” | Lot number: 252771 with expiration date 11/18/25 Truffled turkey with pistachios: Sliced ​​packaging of the “Serrano” brand. | Batch number 252771 with expiration date 11/18/2025 Turkey mortadella with olives: Sliced ​​packaging from the La tabla brand (Aldi) | Lot numbers: 252761 with expiration date 11/17/2025 and 252771 with expiration date 11/18/2025 Turkey mortadella: Sliced ​​packaging from the “La tabla (Aldi)” brand. | Lot number: 252761 with expiration date 11/17/2025 and 252771 with expiration date 11/18/2025 Chopped turkey: Sliced ​​packaging of the brand “La tabla (Aldi)” | Lot number: 252761 with expiration date 11/17/2025 and 252771 with expiration date 11/18/2025 Maxi turkey: Sliced ​​packaging of the brand “La tabla (Aldi)” | Batch number: 252761 and 252763 with expiration date 11/17/2025. Maxi York: Sliced ​​packaging of the brand “La tabla (Aldi)” | Batch number and expiration date: 252761 and 252763 with expiration date 11/17/2025. What has happened? As I said, on November 7 (and through the Coordinated System for Rapid Information Exchange), the AESAN received a alert notification of the Junta de Andalucía regarding the presence of Listeria monocytogenes in a sliced ​​chop sold at DIA Supermarkets. At the same time that the product was withdrawn, the authorities traced the origin of the outbreak to Cárnicas Serrano, based in Paterna (Valencia). That is where they verified that the company (in addition to having its own brand) manufactured white label sausages. for several supermarkets. That’s why the case has escalated so quickly. According to the information availablethe distribution has been to the autonomous communities of Andalusia, Asturias, Cantabria, Castilla-La Mancha, Castilla y León, Extremadura, Community of Madrid, Basque Country and Valencian Community, yes ok “It is not ruled out that there may be redistributions to other communities autonomous”. What is listeriosis? Listeriosis is an infection caused by listeria monocytogenes. It is an ‘opportunistic’ disease that especially affects pregnant women, newborns, the elderly and, in general, people with a compromised immune system who have eaten contaminated food. Therefore, although generally It is considered a “mild illness” (similar, in many cases, to “gastroenteritis”) in these groups of people can cause quite serious conditions (septicemia or meningitis) and has mortality rates that are between 20 and 30%. The common problem is that people with invasive listeriosis usually develop symptoms between one and four weeks after eating contaminated food (there have been cases where symptoms begin to appear up to 70 days later). This often makes it difficult to identify contaminated food. During pregnancy it can cause a mild infection for the pregnant woman but be serious for the baby. The infection usually occurs due to food poisoning but in severe cases it reaches the blood or brain, causing septicemia, meningitis or encephalitis. Like other food infections, listeriosis can cause fever and diarrhea. How dangerous is the situation? It depends on the level of consumption that the contaminated product reaches. The AESAN recommends that people who have products affected by this alert at home refrain from consuming them. And that is the basic security measure. If you have consumed any of the products from the affected batches and present symptoms compatible with listeriosis (vomiting, diarrhea or fever), it is recommended to go quickly to a health center. Actually: no surprise. In 2019, when the great listeria outbreak in Sevillewas published a study on the epidemiological situation of the disease warned about the increase in hospitalizations. Between 1997 and 2015, there were 5,696 listeriosis-related hospitalizations in Spain. An incredibly high number considering that only a few serious cases require hospitalization. But perhaps the most problematic thing is not that, but the fact that the numbers have not stopped growing in those almost 20 years. In the 1990s, listeria outbreaks were linked to cold cuts, sausages, and other similar products. Today, outbreaks are linked to dairy products, fruits, vegetables and, perhaps related to the upward trend, convenience foods. Is it a trend? Yes, and a dangerous trend: the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) is clear that it is an emerging disease in Europe and that is underdiagnosed. The biggest problem with these infections is that it is not enough to keep the products refrigerated: in slightly contaminated foods, the listeria monocytogenes They can continue to multiply inside the refrigerator. In foods that do not need to be cooked, this is problematic and can only be solved by being especially scrupulous in production processes and food hygiene. In this sense, Zaida Herrador and her team (2019) concluded that, despite the progress, the growth of the disease indicates that “it is necessary to improve the surveillance of this disease in animals and humans” while continuing to improve its control and “the prevention of cases” (with advice to pregnant women and immunosuppressed people). Despite the interest that all this generated in 2019, the pandemic made the issue invisible and the consequences are visible. Image | AESAN In Xataka | Spain returns to a health alert for listeria: its challenge now is not to fall prey to alarmism

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