(MIT Technology Review) – The startup Tau Robotics is sending humanoid robots to clean San Francisco homes. They still need lots of human guidance, but they’re learning.

Tau’s long-term goal is to make autonomous cleaning robots a reality, but they’re not quite there yet: For now, the robots are piloted remotely by humans, who watch what’s going on via cameras mounted in the robots’ heads and wrists. As the robots clean, they collect data that Tau will use to train up their more independent descendants. Every counter successfully wiped and T-shirt successfully folded will help the models that power the robots learn to do better on the next go-round.

Because this data is so valuable to Tau, the company charges less for cleaning than one might expect for such a cutting-edge product. (Read More)