Robotics and physical AI
A robot is a physical system with sensors and mechanisms. AI can help it perceive, plan and act.
What is it?
A robot is a physical system with sensors, motors and mechanisms. AI helps it perceive its surroundings, plan movements and adapt. Physical AI has to work in an unpredictable world, where a mistake is not a wrong word but a wrong movement.
An everyday example
A robot arm in a warehouse recognises an oddly shaped parcel and grips it differently from an ordinary box.
Why does it matter?
Robots bring AI into factories, warehouses, hospitals and homes. The safety of the people around them is therefore the first test.
A common misconception
That a robot with a good language model is also dexterous and safe. Talking about a task is not the same as doing it reliably.
In more detail
Is every robot AI?
No. A robot can follow a precisely fixed path without any learning.
What does a robot have to combine?
Perception, planning, motion control, physical limits and safety.
Why is the real world harder than a simulation?
Because objects are unpredictable, sensors are noisy and actions can cause real damage.
What is embodied AI?
Approaches that link intelligent behaviour to a body, sensors and an environment.
Remember: A mistake in a text is not the same as a mistake in the movement of a robot arm.
Reliable sources
Last reviewed 1 November 2026. An explainer, not professional, legal or medical advice. For rules and figures that change, check the official version.