WHAT AM I?
Unnerving video shows chilling humanoid come to LIFE as new factory robot could build cars of the future
Its incredibly flexible wrists and fingers can manoeuvre parts into millimetre-perfect positions
DAUNTING footage has captured a chilling humanoid robot come to life, stoking fears it could soon replace humans at top factories.
The AI bot, dubbed Figure 02, is said to be the most advanced robot that has been developed yet.
5
5
5
5
5
Automotive giant BMW has been testing the sinister-looking new humanoid robot in a high-tech plant in the USA.
Eerie footage from the factory in South Carolina shows the robot being powered up as it begins a series of tests, recreating conditions in a real-life factory.
The test model moves its arms and hands to boast its superhuman flexibility - and goes on to take a tour of the factory.
As it walks to a workstation it passes other similar bots who are all busy assembling different car parts.
more unique robots
The robot has been designed to work side by side with human workers on real-life production lines.
But its superhuman abilities spark fears about how it could one day outpace humans in such working environments.
Its incredibly flexible wrists and fingers, with 16 degrees of freedom, can manoeuvre parts into millimetre-perfect positions that human joints could never manage.
And even if it makes a mistake its state-of-the-art AI makes sure it corrects it and never repeats it.
Most read in Tech
It boasts three times the processing power of an earlier model, enhanced voice communication, better cameras, mics, and sensors plus a high-performance battery.
Figure 02's hands mimic human strength, enabling it to manage intricate tasks with surgical precision.
Incredible video shows Chinese four-wheeled robodog climb walls and stairs with ease
It can pick up objects as heavy as 55 lbs, coordinate both of its hands, put parts in place accurately, and walk dynamically, says the car maker.
The BMW footage shows it making a deliberate error and adapting so it can fix it on the spot and not hold up the line.
The bot has been developed by California-based tech hub Figure, a £2billion startup that has been backed by giants like Jeff Bezos, Nvidia, Microsoft, and OpenAI.
Benedikt Torka , a BMW spokesperson, said: "The robot is capable of fully autonomous execution of human-like and two-handed tasks requiring varied and dynamic manipulation, complex grasping, and coordination of both hands in unison."
The company is now evaluating how it can be used safely in car production, he added.
Milan Nedeljkovic, one of the board members of the company, said: "The developments in the field of robotics are very promising.
"With an early test operation, we are now determining possible applications for humanoid robots in production.
"We want to accompany this technology from development to industrialisation."
Not everyone is a fan of this move by BMW, as some are concerned that robots will take over human jobs.
Michael Walsh from said BMW's bots look like a "sci-fi disaster come to life," though didn't expand much on why.
Still, BMW is hardly the first company, and certainly won't be the last, to employ robots in the workplace.
Tesla's Optimus bot is another prime example of the technology quickly coming around.
READ MORE SUN STORIES
It comes after a Chinese carmaker released chilling footage of an AI robot making sure cars are safe to drive inside its factory.
The humanoid can be seen conducting safety checks in place of humans as part of Dongfeng Motor's manufacturing process.
Will AI bots take your job?
BY Ethan Singh
AN AI expert told The Sun which jobs could face the axe in the next five years.
Professor Carl Frey, of the Oxford Internet Institute, is a leading academic on the subject of artificial intelligence has bad news for plenty of us.
With the chatbot ChatGPT able to write like a human, experts have previously warned white-collar jobs will be the first to face the axe.
The mind-blowing app can write, read and solve complex puzzles - while other similar AI programmes create incredibly realistic images, videos and even voices.
Jobs which involve analysing documents and telemarketers are likely to be under threat, according to the expert.
Companies may turn to technology to cut costs for tasks they do not need to hire people for.
Professor Frey also believes autonomous vehicles may be on the horizon at some point and this will lead to driving jobs being lost.
He added: "When autonomous vehicles arrive, they're not going to augment a taxi driver, they're going to replace those drivers."
And even if workers manage to hang on to their jobs, he says the influx of new competition for their roles could result in lower wages.
However, he said: "Jobs with in person communication skills are going to be relatively safe from artificial intelligence."
Professor Frey also gave the argument of how AI writing-tools lack "true creativity" as they write based on existing data.
Doctors, nurses and sports coaches are unlikely to be replaced anytime soon because of the human aspect of the roles.
A different world may await us." he added.
Topics