Meta is preparing to enter the robotics market with ambitions to become the "Android for robots." According to Sources, the company is working on its own robot called Metabot, but the main focus is not on hardware, but on creating a software platform that other manufacturers can license.
Meta's CTO Andrew Bosworth said that software is the "bottleneck" in robotics development. The company has combined a team led by former Cruise CEO Mark Witten and the resources of Superintelligence Labs to develop a so-called "world model." It should allow robots to simulate complex physical actions, starting with animating hand movements, and in the future to perform multi-step tasks.
As early as 2025, Meta was considering the idea of creating a robot for household chores — cleaning or folding laundry. But for now, it's just early research.
Meta isn't the only one who sees the future in home robots. Apple is working on a device with a robotic arm and display, and Tesla regularly shows off its humanoid Optimus, albeit in controlled conditions.
If the strategy works, Meta could become a key supplier of an "operating system" for robots, like Google once did for smartphones. But Google is not far behind. Its research unit DeepMind regularly presents new developments in the world of robotics. For example, researchers recently taught their robots to "Google" and transfer knowledge to each other.