Welcome back to In a loopTIME's new twice-weekly newsletter on artificial intelligence. If you're reading this in a browser, why not? subscribe to have your next email delivered straight to your inbox?
What you need to know: My day with robots
This summer I found myself in the strange position of watching a humanoid robot try to load laundry. He squatted down next to the washer-dryer, reached into the laundry basket held by the other with one hand, and put some clothes into the drum. But twice in a row he dropped an item of clothing and was unable to pick it up. The engineer with the garbage disposal grabbed the fallen fabric and timidly moved it behind the car, out of my sight. But the robot's limitations were too obvious to hide.
Noisy startup – I visited the headquarters of Fig AI, a bold startup that hopes to one day become the largest business on the planet. Last week they announced Figure 03, their newest humanoid, to much fanfare. The launch made it clearer than ever that the enormous optimism of the artificial intelligence boom is extending to robotics. Dozens of companies are now vying to create the world's first viable humanoid robot, convinced that recent advances in artificial intelligence have turned what was once a pipe dream into an achievable reality. Drawing AI is currently one of Silicon Valley's biggest and most valuable startups, having just raised $1 billion at a $39 billion valuation.
Star on the cover – Last week we featured Figure 03 on the cover of TIME magazine as part of our “Best Inventions of 2025” issue. I wrote story accompany this cover. I see the purpose of the article as twofold. First, to add some much-needed eyewitness testimony to the news cycle surrounding robotic Figures that are not yet available for purchase. Until now, the public has only been able to appreciate their capabilities through beautifully produced YouTube videos and company blog posts. My reporting shows that Figure's robots are not as reliable as the media may lead you to believe.
The robots are coming – But secondly, I wanted this article to address the possibility that humanoid robots may nonetheless be just around the corner. Readers this newsletter will likely be familiar with the laws of AI scaling—the observation that an AI's capabilities increase in accordance with the amount of (useful) data and computing power on which it trains. For example, GPT-2 was pretty terrible upon its release in 2019, but four years later, GPT-4 blew everyone away. The point is that AI can gain new capabilities very quickly. The Figura company convincingly argues that its robots move along this trajectory. So, with billions of dollars being poured into improving robots, we should seriously prepare for the possibility that humanoids could enter the workforce within a matter of years rather than decades.
You can read my full review of Figure 03. Here. Please feel free to email [email protected] and tell me what you think!
Who to Know: Hock Tan, Broadcom CEO
OpenAI continued its deal-making with chipmakers on Monday, announcing it would team up with Broadcom to develop and deploy 10 gigawatts of artificial intelligence accelerators.
Broadcom has firepower in the world of artificial intelligence. It works with major technology companies to develop its own custom chips; for example, the company has a long-standing partnership with Google to develop the search giant's Tensor Processor, an artificial intelligence chip that Google is using as an alternative to Nvidia's GPUs.
Now it looks like OpenAI is trying to make a similar deal. “By designing its own chips and systems, OpenAI can embed what it learns from developing cutting-edge designs and products directly into hardware, unlocking new levels of capability and intelligence,” OpenAI wrote in a blog post Monday.
For Hock Tan, Broadcom's CEO, the OpenAI deal is just the latest milestone in a bull year that has seen his company's shares rise more than 30% even before the jump spurred by OpenAI's announcement. This makes Broadcom the seventh most valuable company in the world.
AI in action
On Monday, California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a number of new artificial intelligence bills into law, including SB 243, which would introduce measures aimed at protecting children from chatbot “companions.” The law, authored by state Sens. Steve Padilla and Josh Becker, would go into effect on Jan. 1, 2026, and would require companies offering companion chatbots to implement age verification and disclose their suicide and self-harm protocols to the state.
“These companies have the ability to lead the world in innovation, but we have a responsibility to ensure that this does not come at the expense of the health of our children,” Padilla said in a speech shortly before the bill passed.
What we read
America's future may depend on whether AI disappoints even a little — Noah Smith on Substack
There is a growing debate about whether we are in an artificial intelligence bubble. However, most AI researchers report that AI capabilities are on an upward trajectory, with companies such as OpenAI, Microsoft, Google, Amazon, Meta and Nvidia planning to continue investing hundreds of billions of dollars in data center construction through the end of the decade. That optimism could end short-term investor concerns, even as concerns persist over whether AI will generate enough return on investment to justify the growing debt binge. But economist Noah Smith makes a sobering observation: “When we look at the history of industrial bubbles and new technologies in general, it becomes clear that AI doesn't have to fail to cause a crash. It just has to slightly disappoint the most ardent optimists.”
