Aptiv & Vecna Robotics Partner on Next-Gen Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs) for Warehouses
Global industrial technology company Aptiv has announced a strategic collaboration with Vecna Robotics, a leader in AI-driven autonomous material handling. The two companies will co-develop next-generation Autonomous Mobile Robot (AMR) solutions aimed at providing cost-effective automation for warehouses and factories. This partnership will integrate Aptiv’s advanced perception and machine learning technologies into Vecna Robotics’ autonomy and orchestration platform. The goal is to create safer, more efficient, and scalable material handling systems. The collaboration will utilize Aptiv’s PULSE Sensor for 360-degree sensing and its ML-based technologies for real-time perception and path planning. Vecna’s platform will contribute to workflow orchestration and safe navigation in complex environments. Aptiv is set to showcase Vecna Robotics’ CPJ Co-Bot Pallet Jack at CES 2026.
Helm.ai Unveils ‘Factored Embodied AI’ to Solve Autonomous Vehicle Data Challenges
Helm.ai has unveiled a new architectural framework called ‘Factored Embodied AI’ designed to overcome the significant data challenges in the autonomous vehicle industry. This new approach offers a scalable alternative to traditional end-to-end models that require vast amounts of data to learn driving physics. The company demonstrated the capability of its AI Driver, which successfully navigated streets in Torrance, California, with zero-shot steering, meaning it had no prior exposure to those specific roads. This was achieved using simulation and only 1,000 hours of real-world driving data, a fraction of what is typically required. Helm.ai’s framework utilizes a ‘Geometric Reasoning Engine’ to extract the 3D structure of the environment, allowing the vehicle’s decision-making to be trained more efficiently in simulation. This data-efficient approach is intended to enable automakers to deploy advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) up to Level 4 capabilities using their existing development fleets.
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Ghost Robotics Equips Vision 60 Q-UGV with New Manipulator Arm for Complex Tasks
Ghost Robotics has launched a new manipulator arm for its Vision 60 Quadruped Unmanned Ground Vehicle (Q-UGV). This addition is designed to expand the robot’s mission capabilities by enabling precise and robust manipulation in harsh environments. The lightweight, top-mounted arm allows the Vision 60 to perform complex tasks such as opening doors, retrieving objects, and handling equipment while maintaining its agility. The arm features six degrees of freedom and a fully backdrivable design for smooth, force-sensitive control. With a full extension of one meter, the arm has a gripping force of 11.3 kg and a payload capacity of 3.75 kg at a 50 cm reach. The new manipulator arm is intended for use in defense, explosive ordnance disposal (EOD), disaster response, and industrial inspection missions.
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Generative AI Revolutionizes Health Technology Assessment (HTA) Workflows for FDA, NICE
Generative AI is significantly reshaping the process of Health Technology Assessment (HTA) for regulatory bodies like NICE, HAS, and the FDA. The technology is being used to automate the drafting and updating of Global Value Dossiers (GVDs), ensuring consistency across submissions to various international agencies. By enabling faster screening of literature and synthesis of evidence, generative AI has been shown to cut screening workloads by nearly 60%, allowing for quicker alignment on evidence gaps. This acceleration of the research process helps in bringing innovative therapies to patients more rapidly. The successful integration of these AI tools requires transparent data, expert oversight, and cross-functional alignment to maintain scientific integrity.
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Wall Street Integrates Generative AI, Boosting Productivity at JPMorgan and Wells Fargo
Major financial institutions on Wall Street have moved beyond experimentation and are now integrating Generative AI into their daily operations, leading to significant productivity gains. Banks are using AI for tasks such as information searching, content summarization, and software development. JPMorgan, for instance, has reported productivity increases of up to 6% in areas utilizing AI, with the potential for 40% to 50% gains in operations roles. While Wells Fargo has not yet reduced its headcount due to AI, the company’s CEO acknowledged that improved productivity will likely lead to a need for fewer employees in some areas. The banking sector could see an annual value of $200 billion to $340 billion from generative AI, primarily through these productivity improvements.
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Sovereign Cloud Demand Surges, SAP and Nutanix Expand Offerings
The demand for sovereign cloud solutions is increasing as geopolitical shifts and technological advancements create new challenges for organizations managing critical data. In response, major technology companies are expanding their sovereign cloud capabilities. SAP has announced new and expanded collaborations with Mistral AI, Bleu, and Capgemini to accelerate Europe’s digital transformation with secure, AI-driven sovereign cloud solutions. Nutanix is also broadening its support for sovereign cloud with the Nutanix Cloud Platform, enabling customers to operate their own sovereign cloud architectures for traditional, cloud-native, and AI workloads, even in fully disconnected environments. Nutanix’s updates allow for their distributed cloud management platform, Nutanix Central, and their data security and governance tool, Nutanix Data Lens, to be deployed in customer-controlled environments.
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Atom Computing Boosts Quantum Computing with Breakthrough Qubit ‘Recycling’ Method
Atom Computing has made a significant advancement in neutral-atom quantum computing by developing a method to ‘recycle’ qubits, addressing the critical issue of error rates. The US-based firm’s strategy helps maintain a large number of operational qubits in their quantum processors. They have demonstrated the ability to replenish their atom register from a separate magneto-optic trap without disturbing the quantum state of existing atoms. This breakthrough is a key step toward running longer, more complex quantum computations without running out of viable qubits.
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Kubernetes 1.35 ‘Timbernetes’ Released: In-Place Pod Vertical Scaling Now Stable
The Kubernetes project has officially released Kubernetes 1.35 ‘Timbernetes’. This new version introduces 60 enhancements, with 17 graduating to stable status. A major stable feature is the in-place updating of Pod resources, allowing for the vertical scaling of CPU and memory for running Pods without requiring a restart. This is a significant improvement for managing workloads, as it allows for adjustments without causing downtime for stateful applications. The release also sees the deprecation and eventual removal of the Ingress NGINX controller, which will receive best-effort maintenance until March 2026 before being archived. Additionally, ‘Timbernetes’ begins the phasing out of cgroup v1 support.
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