The AEON humanoid from Hexagon features two legs that end in wheels, providing more flexibility than a typical bipedal robot. | Source: Hexagon
Schaeffler AG last week said it is expanding its partnership with Hexagon Robotics Division. The company said it will deploy at least 1,000 of the AEON humanoid robots across its global production system by 2032.
Schaeffler will also provide its high-precision actuators for AEON, further strengthening the technological alignment with Hexagon.
“We have developed a humanoid specifically for the industrial market, leveraging our core expertise in sensor fusion, spatial intelligence, and physical AI,” stated Arnaud Robert, president of Hexagon Robotics. “We are delighted to see our humanoid AEON move into real-world production. Working with Schaeffler allows us to deliver demonstrable business value across various factory environments and scale our operations.”
Last year, Schaeffler completed a pilot program with Hexagon’s robots. During the pilot phase, AEON used its sensor suite and wheel-based locomotion to demonstrate high-precision manipulation capabilities in operating a multi-machine station to load, unload, and inspect parts in an actual manufacturing operation.
Hexagon moves from pilot to deployment
Building on the successful pilot, the companies now plan to deploy the robots across multiple sites, with additional applications, such as automated parts inspection, targeted for rollout starting at the end of 2026.
A key focus of the partnership is the generation and use of real-world production data to enable faster deployment of AEONs across new use cases and production settings.
“Our innovative actuator platform is the technology backbone for the next generation of humanoid robots,” said Dr. Jochen Schröder, chief operating officer of Schaeffler. “In other words, we are creating the foundation for making humanoid robotics fit for widespread use.”
“The cooperation with Hexagon Robotics shows how Schaeffler combines hardware excellence with industrial application,” he added. “Not only are we developing key components, we are also integrating robots from Hexagon systematically into our own plants with the clear aim of further boosting our competitiveness through the use of physical AI.”
Schaeffler also partners with VinDynamics on humanoids
VinDynamics is developing intelligent, safe, and general-purpose humanoid robots. | Source: VinDynamics
Schaeffler also signed a memorandum of understanding with VinDynamics, another humanoid developer. The companies established a strategic partnership focused on joint research and development, where Schaeffler will supply the key components to VinDynamics for the production of humanoid robots. These will include actuator systems and related motion technology components.
VinDynamics said it will conduct technical assessments and optimization of its control software to ensure compatibility with Schaeffler actuators.
To enhance system performance and reliability, the collaboration extends beyond production to advice and support in product simulation and validation. VinDynamics plans to share operational product data of the supplied actuators with Schaeffler. The companies said this will enable Schaeffler to further improve actuator designs and performance, as well as to advance its services, including condition monitoring and predictive maintenance.
The signing took place in Hanoi, Vietnam, marking Schaeffler’s first cooperation with a humanoid company in Southeast Asia, in addition to its worldwide partners.
Editor’s note: The Robotics Summit & Expo next month in Boston will include sessions on humanoid robots and AI. Register now to attend.
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