Playing cards & making balloons: humanoids take center stage at ICRA

From running marathons to serving food, humanoid robots are becoming increasingly dexterous and adaptable, demonstrating capabilities that were once considered far beyond the reach of machines.

These advances are on display at this year's International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA) in Vienna, where around 9,000 researchers and companies from around the world are showcasing the latest developments in robotics technology.

One standout exhibit is a robotic black jack dealer developed by Sharpa. Making its European debut in Vienna, the robot can serve cards and adapt movements in real time, even when interrupted or teased. This comes shortly after the company announced collaborations with tech heavyweights Nvidia and Unitree.

"It's probably one of the first times that we see such a robot in Europe performing tasks that you might find easy but it's actually pretty difficult for a robot," said Alicia Veneziani, President of Sharpa Europe. "Why? Because he manipulates cards. Cards are thin, they're flexible, they're very difficult to grasp. Especially when you try to grasp just one at a time."

The ICRA conference is being accompanied by a robotics festival in the center of the Austrian capital, highlighting Europe's role in the rapidly growing robotics sector.

Vienna wants to show that Europe is just as much at the forefront of robotics as China and the United States. In fact, Europe accounts for five of the ten countries with the highest robot density – that's the number of industrial robots in use per 10,000 human workers. Germany stands out in particular, ranking second worldwide in foreign direct investment in automation and robotics.

Among the projects attracting attention is a research initiative that could represent a future European breakthrough in robotics: a crane capable of balancing logs autonomously.

"The AI is able to do this much more quickly. If a human is operating the crane, the log can sway and the operator has to wait for it to settle before lowering it," said Andreas Vrabl, Head of Vision, Automation & Control at the Austrian Institute of Technology.

Another major focus at this year's conference is the integration of advanced sensors to improve robot functionality, particularly in safety-related applications.

"We have just now integrated a Sorama camera (into our robot) which is an acoustic monitor that allows us to very precisely pinpoint the locations of gas leaks," said Martijn De Kwassteniet of Taurop's Customer Success Team.

The conference is also showcasing a Chinese-made robotic hand capable of performing highly complex movements, including spinning and twisting objects.

"On the five fingertips you can see we use vision-based tactile sensors, right here. And you can sense both the contact force and also the friction," said Xiaoxuan Han, Marketing Director at AGIBOT.

Whether handling balloons, balancing logs or dealing playing cards, the latest advances in robotics are rapidly expanding the range of tasks machines can perform – bringing them ever closer to everyday life.