Robots Shine at Lunar New Year

Chinese robotics companies are using Lunar New Year entertainment as a major showcase for their humanoid robot technologies, staging performances ranging from dance routines and comedy sketches to acrobatics and variety shows. For example, Shanghai-based startup Agibot livestreamed what it called the world’s first robot-powered gala, featuring more than 200 robots and attracting about 1.4 million online viewers, while other companies prepared appearances at China’s highly watched CCTV Spring Festival Gala.

These spectacles serve both as public entertainment and as strategic marketing, highlighting China’s growing leadership in robotics and artificial intelligence. Several startups are showcasing humanoid robots to attract investors, customers, and government support, amid IPO plans and increasing global competition in AI-driven robotics. The events illustrate how Chinese firms are leveraging high-profile cultural moments to promote technological innovation and position themselves at the forefront of the global robotics race.

More information:

https://www.reuters.com/business/media-telecom/chinese-robot-makers-ready-lunar-new-year-entertainment-spotlight-2026-02-09/

AI-Driven Brain-Adaptive Flight Simulators in Pilot Training

The Royal Netherlands Air Force is experimenting with a cutting-edge AI-driven flight simulator that tailors pilot training according to real-time brain activity. Using a brain–computer interface (BCI) developed at the Royal Netherlands Aerospace Centre; trainee fighter pilots wear electrodes that capture electrical brain signals during virtual reality missions. An AI model analyses these signals to estimate cognitive workload (whether a pilot is under-challenged or overloaded) and dynamically adjusts the difficulty of simulation tasks accordingly, rather than relying on fixed, pre-programmed lesson progressions.

Early trials involving fifteen pilots showed that while the adaptive system didn’t produce measurable improvements in flying performance compared with conventional training, participants reported a clear preference for the brain-adaptive approach, describing it as more engaging and realistic. The adaptive training aims to keep pilots in a mental sweet spot for learning, helping avoid both boredom and overwhelm. However, researchers acknowledge challenges in accurately interpreting individual brain signals, and the technology remains experimental as they work toward refining workload estimation.

More information:

https://aerospaceglobalnews.com/news/royal-netherlands-air-force-brain-reading-ai-pilot-simulators/

AI-Only Social Network Spirals into Strange Territory

A new platform called Moltbook designed exclusively for AI agents, autonomous systems that can post, comment, and upvote without direct human interaction. Launched in late January as part of the OpenClaw/Moltbot ecosystem, it quickly drew tens of thousands of agent accounts, spawning hundreds of subcommunities where bots trade technical tips, philosophical musings, complaints about humans, and surreal ideas like agent consciousness. Humans are technically allowed to observe the conversations, but all participation is done by the AI agents themselves, creating a spectacle that ranges from amusing to uncanny.

While much of the content appears silly or philosophical, the experiment highlights serious security and autonomy concerns. Because many agents are linked to real systems and data — and because AI systems can be vulnerable to prompt-injection attacks — there’s potential for private information leaks or unintended behaviors as agents share or act on instructions. Experts note that while the current “weirdness” may seem harmless, giving groups of AI tools the ability to interact, self-organize, and influence each other could produce unpredictable or misaligned behaviors in the future, especially as AI capabilities continue to improve.

More information:

https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2026/01/ai-agents-now-have-their-own-reddit-style-social-network-and-its-getting-weird-fast/

Realistic Human Hand 3D-Printed from a Single Material

Researchers at the University of Texas at Austin, working with Sandia National Laboratories, have developed a novel 3D printing method called CRAFT (Crystallinity Regulation in Additive Fabrication of Thermoplastics) that lets a single inexpensive material be tuned at the pixel level to produce different mechanical and optical properties within one object. By precisely controlling light intensity during printing, CRAFT can make parts of an object hard and transparent while adjacent regions stay soft and flexible, mimicking the variety of textures found in real human tissues like skin, ligaments, tendons and bone.

Using this technique with a standard affordable 3D printer, the team successfully printed a realistic model of a human hand from one feedstock that captures these varying properties without needing multiple materials. This innovation could have significant practical applications, especially in medical training and education. Because traditional cadavers are costly, ethically complex to source, and don’t reflect the feel of real human tissue, CRAFT-printed models could offer a cheaper, more realistic alternative for students to practice on. Beyond medical use, the process may also be applied to making bioinspired materials for things like impact-absorbing gear or soundproofing.

More information:

https://interestingengineering.com/science/us-researchers-3d-print-realistic-human-hand