Darius Baruo
Jan 29, 2026 17:28
NVIDIA releases new open-source bodily AI fashions and frameworks at CES 2026, with Caterpillar, LEM Surgical, and NEURA Robotics deploying techniques constructed on the stack.
NVIDIA unveiled a complete suite of open bodily AI fashions and frameworks at CES 2026, with main industrial companions already deploying techniques constructed on the expertise. The announcement comes as NVDA trades at $189.50, up 1.8% on the day, with the corporate’s market cap sitting at $4.63 trillion.
The brand new toolkit spans your complete robotics improvement pipeline—from simulation and artificial knowledge technology to edge deployment. Caterpillar, LEM Surgical, and NEURA Robotics demonstrated working techniques on the present, marking a shift from lab prototypes to production-ready machines.
Industrial Deployments Take Middle Stage
Caterpillar’s Cat AI Assistant now runs on NVIDIA’s Jetson Thor edge module, bringing voice-activated controls into heavy gear cabs. Operators can regulate security parameters and obtain step-by-step steerage by means of pure language. Behind that interface, Caterpillar makes use of Omniverse libraries to simulate job-site layouts and multi-machine workflows earlier than pushing modifications to precise fleets.
LEM Surgical introduced one thing extra consequential: an FDA-cleared robotic surgical system already in routine medical use for spinal procedures. The Dynamis system makes use of Jetson AGX Thor for compute and NVIDIA’s Cosmos Switch world mannequin to generate artificial coaching knowledge. The twin-arm humanoid robotic mimics surgeon dexterity whereas decreasing bodily pressure on surgical groups.
NEURA Robotics is coaching its 4NE1 humanoid and MiPA service robots in OpenUSD-based digital twins by means of Isaac Sim and Isaac Lab. The corporate has partnered with SAP to combine Joule AI brokers with its robots, utilizing NVIDIA’s Mega Omniverse Blueprint to simulate advanced operational eventualities earlier than real-world deployment.
The Open-Supply Play
NVIDIA’s technique facilities on making these instruments freely accessible. The corporate launched Isaac Lab-Area for coverage analysis, the Alpamayo portfolio for autonomous automobiles, and integration with Hugging Face’s LeRobot ecosystem. Builders can now entry Isaac GR00T N1.6 fashions straight inside LeRobot workflows.
This open strategy is not altruistic—it is ecosystem lock-in by means of totally different means. When builders construct on NVIDIA’s simulation frameworks, they’re extra more likely to deploy on NVIDIA {hardware}. The Hugging Face partnership places GR00T fashions in entrance of that platform’s robotics neighborhood, and Reachy 2 humanoid compatibility with Jetson Thor creates one other {hardware} pathway.
AgiBot is utilizing Cosmos Predict 2 because the spine for its Genie Envisioner platform, producing action-conditioned movies that assist insurance policies switch extra reliably to bodily robots. Intbot is utilizing Cosmos Purpose 2 to offer social robots contextual consciousness past scripted interactions.
What Merchants Ought to Watch
CEO Jensen Huang referred to as this “the ChatGPT second for bodily AI” throughout his CES keynote on January 10. That is advertising and marketing hyperbole, however the industrial deployments recommend actual traction. An FDA-cleared surgical robotic and Caterpillar integration symbolize enterprise income streams, not simply analysis partnerships.
The Alpamayo launch on January 5 particularly targets autonomous automobile edge circumstances—the uncommon eventualities which have stalled large-scale AV deployment. If NVIDIA’s simulation instruments might help clear up the long-tail drawback that is plagued the trade, the corporate captures worth from each automaker and robotics agency constructing on its stack.
Close to-term catalysts embrace adoption metrics from the Cosmos Cookoff developer problem and any manufacturing bulletins from companions like NEURA Robotics or AgiBot. The surgical robotics angle deserves explicit consideration—healthcare purposes usually command premium margins and face much less regulatory uncertainty than client robotics.
Picture supply: Shutterstock
