October 2026 was a busy month for the robotics industry, according to the most popular articles published by The Robot Report. The month included commercial agreements for humanoid robots, new hardware from Boston Dynamics, developments in physical AI and major industrial and government contracts.
AGCO and Agility Robotics signed an agreement to deploy Agility's Digit humanoid robot at AGCO's manufacturing facility in Hesston, Kan. The U.S. pilot is expected to begin in 2027 and will support AGCO's plans for more flexible and intelligent factories.
Agility Robotics also announced an expanded partnership with GXO Logistics. The companies plan to deploy Digit robots at GXO sites in North Carolina and Tennessee.
Boston Dynamics presented a new humanoid hand for Atlas. The directly actuated, four-fingered gripper has 13 degrees of freedom and was designed with mass production in mind. The company said the latest version places greater emphasis on manipulating objects, while earlier Atlas hands were designed to grasp a broad range of items.
The month also renewed attention on embodied AI. Humanoid robots performing tasks such as balancing, folding laundry and navigating difficult terrain were cited as examples of how robotic capabilities have advanced beyond what seemed possible just a few years ago.
In construction, Promise Robotics signed a multiyear agreement with D.R. Horton. The homebuilder will use Promise's Factory-as-a-Service capabilities to produce more than 1,250 homes in the United States.
Amazon Web Services launched an open-source Physical AI Toolchain intended to help roboticists handle data collection, model training, simulation, validation and deployment. The workflow combines AWS services with NVIDIA's Physical AI software stack.
Schneider Electric said it would acquire industrial design, engineering and data management company PTC for approximately $22.6 billion. The companies said the combination would connect digital and physical processes across the lifecycle of products and industrial operations.
Boston Dynamics also appointed Rohit Prasad as its new CEO. He succeeds Chief Financial Officer Amanda McMaster, who had served as interim chief executive after former CEO Robert Playter stepped down nearly nine months earlier.
Gecko Robotics said it secured an additional $300 million under its contract with the U.S. Navy and the General Services Administration. The increase quadrupled the ceiling value of the government contract, which supports efforts to reduce maintenance delays and improve fleet readiness.
October also marked the 20th anniversary of RoboBusiness. The event organizers announced that the show will be rebranded as Robotics Summit & Expo West next year.
Sources: The Robot Report.