The 2026 Robotics Handbook examines humanoids, artificial intelligence, and design choices

This year, The robot report have continued to share developments in the design, engineering, and implementation of commercial systems, but the pace of change has accelerated. This is due to advances in hardware, size, and most importantly, artificial intelligence. The 2026 Robotics Handbook covers some of the major trends in the industry.

As labor shortages drive demand for automation, markets become more knowledgeable about robot capabilities, and systems themselves become easier to use, robotics adoption is growing. According to the International Federation of Robotics (IFR) and the Association for Advancing Automation (A3), both global and US orders are increasing after a post-pandemic lull.

This free download examines the engineering challenges, component selection, and market opportunities for robotics. While humanoid robots are still in development and commercial testing, huge amounts of funding have led to stiff competition as large tech companies and emerging startups try different form factors and use cases.

Artificial intelligence is the other major topic of 2026, as it will change the way robots are designed, programmed and operated. From large language models and vision-language-action models to world models, artificial intelligence is already starting to make robots more autonomous, easier to use, and safer for people to interact with. However, the devil is in the details, as concerns around data, cybersecurity and national sovereignty persist.

What the 2026 Robotics Handbook presents

The 2026 Robotics Handbook also examines advances in skillful manipulation and highlights an industry where automation is just starting: construction. In this issue you will learn about:

• The importance of costs, human involvement and generalization versus manipulator specialization with Plus One Robotics
• What effects does integration, security, and the desire for human-level abilities have on the pace of humanoid development, as seen in Jabil’s collaboration with Apptronik
• A look at how Boston Dynamics has approached end effectors as it works to bring its Atlas humanoid robot to market
• The role of “virtual gyms” and simulation to accelerate artificial intelligence for complex robotic behaviors from SoftServe
• Why suction and soft grippers are better than both with Locus Robotics
• How Monumental established masonry as the starting point for automation in the construction industry

Sponsors of the 2026 Robotics Handbook include DigiKey, All Motion, CS Hyde Co., Boker’s Inc., SIKO Products Inc. and ElectroCraft.