OpenAI is entering embodied AI

Originally published on Substack.

It’s quite plausible that OpenAI is exploring embodied AI and may eventually integrate it as a core pillar of its technology stack. They appear to be laying groundwork in robotics hiring, partnerships, and hardware ambitions.

1. OpenAI’s careers page includes roles like “Mechanical Product Engineer, Robotics,” “Electrical Engineer, Robotics,” “Simulation Environments Engineer, Robotics,” “DAQ Software Engineer, Robotics,” etc. These roles suggest they are working on integrating models with hardware, sensors, actuators, and systems-level control.

2. OpenAI had earlier efforts in robotics (e.g. robotic manipulation research) but paused them. Now, it appears they’re ramping back up, building new teams from scratch.

3. OpenAI has invested in or collaborated with @Figure_robot . The collaboration aims to bridge high-level reasoning with low-level robot control. It has also backed @physical_int who building foundational software for controlling robots across multiple hardware platforms.

4. OpenAI reportedly filed a trademark for “humanoid robot” early 2025.