When I saw an X post about a new humanoid-robot cleaning service in San Francisco, I immediately signed up for the waitlist. I wanted my apartment to feel like The Jetsons, even if just for an hour.
The device that arrived at my building belongs to Tau Robotics, a local startup. Its long-term goal is to make autonomous cleaning robots a reality, but the technology isn’t quite there yet. For now, humans pilot the robots remotely, watching them work through onboard cameras.
There were some unexpected challenges along the way, but also moments that felt like a glimpse of the future.
Find out how well the machine cleaned my home—and how close we are to truly autonomous domestic robots.
A visit to Samsung’s massive new semiconductor hub
Generative AI models depend on stacks of specialized memory chips. To meet soaring demand, Samsung is building a vast new semiconductor manufacturing campus in Pyeongtaek, South Korea.
I visited the sprawling campus south of Seoul, where three fabs already operate around the clock, a fourth is coming online, and thousands of workers are racing to build a fifth.
Step inside the vast chipmaking complex powering the AI boom.
—Michelle Kim
