Step inside the Humanoids Summit Tokyo 2026, the world’s leading event dedicated to humanoid robots and Physical AI.

This highlight reel captures the key moments from two incredible days in Tokyo, where more than 2,000 attendees from 30+ countries gathered to explore the future of robotics, artificial intelligence, automation, and embodied AI. From groundbreaking keynote presentations and expert panel discussions to live robot demonstrations and networking with industry leaders, Tokyo 2026 brought together the companies, researchers, investors, and innovators shaping the next generation of intelligent machines.

In this video, you’ll see:
• Highlights from Humanoids Summit Tokyo 2026
• The latest advancements in humanoid robotics and Physical AI
• Industry leaders discussing commercialization and deployment
• Robotics startups, investors, and global technology companies
• Live demonstrations of cutting-edge robotic systems
• Key insights on the future of work, manufacturing, healthcare, and automation

Whether you’re a robotics engineer, AI researcher, investor, entrepreneur, or technology enthusiast, this recap provides a glimpse into the innovations driving the future of humanoid robots worldwide.

Learn more about future events:
🌐 https://humanoidssummit.com

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In this interview, Tim Romero sits down with Wegner Hagen, the Director of FEV Consulting, to explore the rapidly evolving landscape of humanoid and advanced robotics. They discuss the strategic and engineering services FEV Consulting provides to help companies navigate the humanoid value chain.

Several key topics covered in this discussion include:

Compelling Use Cases: Insights into how robotics are being integrated into warehousing, manufacturing, and the construction industry.

Overcoming Industry Bottlenecks: A look at the technological and integration challenges in complex environments, such as sensing requirements and battery life.

The Economics of Robotics: An analysis of how the economy of scale is expected to drive the cost of humanoid robots down from over $100k to approximately $20k–$25k.

Form Factors vs. Functionality: Why "advanced robotics" may favor use-case-specific designs such as rolling chassis or single-arm configurations over traditional two-legged humanoid forms.

Japan’s Global Role: The unique strengths Japan offers through R&D legacy and material innovations in skins, structural frames, and actuators.

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In this interview, Tim Romero speaks with Mehrdad Farimani, the founder of MERPHI, about the evolving landscape of humanoid robotics and the critical role of human-robot interaction (HRI) design.

As robotics transitions from caged industrial automation to collaborative human environments such as homes, hospitals, and schools the design philosophy must shift from purely functional to holistic. Farimani explains how MERPHI helps clients navigate this transition by integrating industrial design, hardware mechanics, motion, voice, and facial interaction to ensure robots are both safe and approachable for end-users.

A few key topics discussed include:

Holistic Design: Why design in robotics is about the entire interaction between human and machine, including visual coherence, touch, and ergonomics.

Perceived Safety vs. Actual Safety: The importance of using soft, rounded edges to encourage human proximity and trust.

Modern vs. Classic Robotics: How modern robotics addresses unpredictable "nonlinear objects" (humans) and complex tasks that were previously impossible to automate.

The Challenges of Commercialization: Insights into why many innovative Japanese and European robotic projects struggle to scale compared to the American business model.

Contradictory Design Requirements: A real-world example of designing a security robot that needed to be simultaneously intimidating to vandals and welcoming to customers.

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In this interview, Tim Romero sits down with Terence Bennett, the Executive Director of the Bay Area Robotics Association (BARA), to discuss the rapidly evolving landscape of humanoid robotics and advanced automation. Bennett shares insights on the mission of BARA, a 501 non-profit dedicated to advancing robotics by connecting startups, investors, and manufacturers within the Bay Area ecosystem and beyond.

A few key topics covered in this discussion include:

Commercialization Challenges: Why warehousing and logistics are the early adoption leaders for humanoid robotics.

The Safety and Compliance Gap: The urgent need to update ISO standards for a new generation of robots that operate alongside humans without traditional safety cages.

A Shift in Investment: Why venture capital is moving from software to hardware as AI reduces the defensibility of software moats.

Japan’s Global Role: How Japan’s legacy of human-centered design is poised to integrate with modern AI world models to lead the next wave of robotics.

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In this episode, Tim Romero sits down with Rikiya Yamamoto, the CEO of RobotMateHub and the visionary creator behind Robot Mate Hub. Together, they explore the evolving landscape of the robotics industry in Japan and the critical role of physical AI.

A few key Discussion Points are:

The Mission of Robot Mate Hub: Rikiya Yamamoto explains his platform's goal to bridge the gap for those interested in the robotics industry, moving beyond just researcher-level education to include areas like implementation and human-robot interaction.

Breaking Industry Silos: Insights into why collaboration between corporations, startups, and academia has historically been difficult in Japan and how mobility between these sectors is essential for innovation.

Japan's Unique Strengths: A look at Japan's cultural acceptance of robots as "beings," its expertise in core hardware components, and the pressing economic need for robotics due to an aging population.

The Future of Human-Robot Coexistence: Exploring the high expectations of Japanese consumers for natural communication and the potential for humanoid robots to become integrated into daily household life.

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In this interview, Tim Romero sits down with Yong Ryu, the founder and CEO of RLWRLD, to discuss the critical evolution of humanoid robotics. While many industries have achieved high levels of automation, the "last mile" of labor, tasks requiring intricate human-level dexterity, remains a major challenge. Ryu explains how RLWRLD is developing foundation models and five-fingered hardware to bridge this gap in environments originally designed for humans

A few key Discussion Points:
The "Last Mile" of Automation: Why traditional robots can't replace the final 25% of human labor that requires high-level dexterity and intelligence.

The Importance of Five Fingers: How human-like hardware allows robots to learn directly from human video data and operate in spaces built for human ergonomics.

Real-World Deployment: Exploring applications in Japanese convenience stores for restocking and Korean hotel chains for management.

Japan as a Robotic Leader: Why Japan’s cultural openness to robots and urgent population decline make it the ideal market for humanoid deployment.

Top 3 Industry Demands: Ryu identifies manufacturing, hospitality/service, and logistics as the primary sectors for widespread humanoid adoption.

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Join us for an insightful conversation with our interviewer Tim Romero and James Wells. A venture capitalist dedicated to commercializing breakthrough hardware technologies. With a track record of co-creating three companies and contributing to a top-quartile fund, James shares his expertise on scaling innovations in carbon capture, water treatment, and clean hydrogen production.

Beyond his professional achievements, James discusses his incredible personal feats, including cycling across Canada to raise funds for the Parkinson's Society and completing an IRONMAN using only yoga for training.

In this interview, we cover:
James's background in Biochemistry from the University of British Columbia.
His experience in venture capital and commercializing hardware breakthroughs.
Insights into sustainable technologies like carbon capture and clean hydrogen.
The mindset required for extreme physical challenges like cross-country cycling and IRONMAN competitions.

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Join us for an insightful interview with Tim Romero Founder of Disrupting Japan and Leopold Beer, VP and General Manager of the Sensing Division at Renesas Electronics, recorded at the Humanoid Summit in Tokyo 2026. In this discussion, we explore the critical role of sensing in the rapidly evolving world of humanoid robotics and physical AI.

Key Topics Covered:
The Scaling Gap: Why hardware sensing and actuation are currently lagging behind the rapid advancements in AI and large language models.
Human-Centric Design: The importance of developing sensors that can translate human-like senses—including optical, mechanical, and thermal—into the digital world.
Safety and Interaction: The breakthrough technology allowing robots to distinguish between touching objects and humans, a vital step for unconstrained human-robot interaction.
The Dexterity Challenge: Why the human hand remains the "last frontier" of sensing due to the extreme density of sensors required for force, torque, and motion.
Japan as a Robotics Hub: Why Japan’s technological foundation and societal openness make it the perfect testbed for future humanoid deployments.

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