Robotic hands are seriously getting crazy.
In the race to automate everything, an eclectic array of end effectors is hitting the market. They’re coming close to matching the capabilities of human hands and, at times, even exceeding them.
Over the next few years, analysts expect them to take over tasks that require human-level precision and adaptability. And they’ll likely show up everywhere long before humanoid robots walking around feels normal.
Kyber’s Robot Hands Does Lab Work
The New York startup Kyber Labs just shared a demo featuring its highly dexterous robotic hand doing the hardest parts of blood work to automate.
Having robots take over the hands-on parts of lab work could enable around-the-clock testing with faster turnaround times. It could also greatly reduce the need for human workers in an industry that’s described as facing a critical labor shortage right now.
In the demo, Kyber’s robot hand executes on a 42-step workflow it generates from a simple lab request. According to Kyber, the robot’s artificial intelligence breaks the tasks into smaller actions and then executes each one sequentially.
In just under 4 minutes, the mechanical hand opens test tubes to access samples, presses a tube into a vortex mixer, uses a pipette to precisely measure and transfer small amounts of liquid between containers, loads the tubes into a centrifuge and activates a spin cycle to separate the different components based on density, and then returns each sample to its exact position. All without human intervention. Brooklyn-based Kyber Labs, launched in 2022, built the demo with a clinical pathology lab.
Kyber’s robotic hand features a reported 20 degrees of freedom (DoF), with tendon-driven joints that work similarly to human muscles. The startup says it’s working toward a dual-arm robotic platform for tasks requiring human-level precision.
Singapore’s SharpaWave
The fast-rising Singaporean startup Sharpa Robotics recently showcased the ability of its flagship humanoid robot, North, to assemble a PC autonomously.
The startup shared footage of the wheeled robot carefully inserting a GPU into a computer’s motherboard. The task is extremely challenging for traditional industrial robots due to tight tolerances and risk of damaging sensitive components. The robot finishes the job by securing components with screws and organizing internal wiring using its highly dexterous end effectors.
North is powered by Sharpa’s self-developed vision-tactile-language-action (VTLA) model called CraftNet that’s specifically geared toward jobs requiring fine manipulation.
The humanoid’s robotic h and is called the SharpaWave. It boasts a reported 22 DoF which approaches the agility and range of motion of human hands. Each finger has more than 1,000 touch sensors that detect tiny changes in pressure and contact so North can adjust its movements and complete delicate tasks. The tactile sensors send updated info up to 180 times per second to the SharpaWave’s AI brain, which uses the stream of data to make split-second decisions.
Sharpa says it’s begun mass-producing its SharpaWave hands but has not publicly disclosed pricing. The startup was founded in 2024 by the same team behind Hesai Technology, one of China’s largest LiDAR firms.
Changingtek’s Left-Right Hand
In China, Changingtek Robotics just introduced what it calls the first robotic hand that can switch between left and right mid-task.
The X2 hand is nicknamed Shu Qiao, which translates to skillful hands in Mandarin. Designed to surpass human capabilities, the end effector is built for jobs like component assembly and lab automation.
According to the Suzhou-based startup, the hand uses a rope-driven system that works like tendons to control each finger. With its reconfigurable internal structure, the hand’s thumb and fingers can shift positions while working. The hand uses its built-in vision system and onboard artificial intelligence to see what it’s handling and to adjust its grip in real time.
Changingtek has not publicly disclosed pricing but its existing five-fingered robot gripper is listed on Alibaba for around $7,000.
Linkerbot’s L30 Phantom
Another rising Chinese player in the dexterous manipulation niche is Beijing’s Linkerbot, which has been going viral with its latest high-performance robotic hand.
The Linker Hand L30 features a tendon-driven system with a reported 22 DoF. It’s engineered for highly precise, contact-rich tasks with a level of control that approaches, and at times, exceeds human capabilities. It’s pricing starting around $14,000.
Linkerbot is backed by major investors and is reportedly supplying juggernauts like Siemens and Samsung.
Hexacercle’s Robot Hand Swarm
In Wuhan, Hexacercle Technology recently demonstrated the ability of its motion capture technology to control a swarm of end effectors.
The glove captures precise finger and handle muscle movements, translating even subtle gestures into high-fidelity motion data that’s streamed in real time to the hardware.
Wearable tech like Hexacercle’s is surging in popularity as companies around the world race to train next-gen machines for the future of work.
Figure AI’s 7th-Gen Hand
One of the companies investing the most in real-world data collection is Silicon Valley-based Figure AI.
The $39 billion startup’s founder, Brett Adcock, has said the robotics firm is on the seventh iteration of its highly dexterous robotic hand that pairs with its flagship humanoid, the Figure 03.
Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff recently shared footage of Figure’s third-generation humanoid sorting packages at an unnamed logistics facility. The humanoid is powered by Figure’s in-house Helix vision-language-action (VLA) model. Benioff tried repeatedly to trip the robot up but it kept going.
Mimic’s Hand Tackles Automotive Assembly
In Germany, Audi is working with the Swiss startup Mimic Robotics to take on fine-motor assembly work that industrial robots have struggled with for decades.
Zurich-based Mimic is developing robotic hands that boast a reported 21 DoF. According to Mimic, the dexterity approaches the capabilities of human hands, which typically have 27 DoF. Mimic, launched in 2024, the hands are engineered for tasks requiring fine-finger coordination and complex grasping patterns.
They can reportedly handle payloads up to 7 kg (15 lbs) and operate with submillimeter precision. The hands mount onto standard industrial robot arms that are ubiquitous in automotive manufacturing. Mimic’s end effectors are powered by the startup’s proprietary AI that’s heavily trained on human demonstrations.
The company was spun out of ETH Zurich with early support from Swiss innovation programs like Venture Kick and the European Space Agency (ESA)’s business incubation center. Mimic has raised about $16 million in seed funding to date to scale its system.
Allonic’s Westworld-like Production System
Elsewhere in Central Europe, the Hungarian startup Allonic is generating buzz with its automated manufacturing system that’s straight out of Westworld. Read all about the so-called 3D tissue system here.