On more than 2,300 square metres, companies can test humanoid robots on real tasks. Neura Robotics used the opening to present the fourth generation of its humanoid 4NE1.
The Technical University of Munich and Neura Robotics have opened the TUM RoboGym at the LabCampus of Munich Airport. It is meant as a real-world lab for what is called physical AI, meaning artificial intelligence that sits inside robots and works in the real world. It was built jointly by TUM's robotics institute MIRMI and the company from Metzingen.
The facility covers more than 2,300 square metres. The project initially runs for three years with a volume of around 17 million euros, of which Neura contributes about 11 million. According to Neura, companies from more than ten industries have been training specific tasks there since September, among them the car industry, pharmaceuticals, logistics and care. The RoboGym is to become the first site of a whole network of such training centres, with more planned in Europe, the USA and China.
New 4NE1 noticeably lighter
At the opening, Neura presented the fourth generation of its humanoid 4NE1. According to the manufacturer it is around 20 percent lighter than its predecessor, heise reports about 64 kilograms at a height of 1.80 metres. New features include a slimmer design with a textile cover, reworked hands and limbs with built-in reflexes. The robot is controlled by Neura's own AI model Neuron AI. The 4NE1 is designed for series production, Neura has said nothing about price or quantities.
Besides TUM President Thomas Hofmann and Neura founder David Reger, the Bavarian state ministers Markus Blume, Albert Füracker and Hubert Aiwanger attended the opening. At the same time, TUM opened its Convergence Center at the airport, which houses among other things an AI factory and a lab on the future of work.