euROBIN connects Europe’s robotics and AI leaders, enabling robots to share knowledge, learn and collaborate with humans and each other. Driving innovation through ‘coopetition’.
Description
Robots are entering a large number of sectors – from collaborative robots (cobots) working alongside human workers to medical robots. To support us in our daily life, robots are entering unstructured environments which require the exchange of skills and software with other robots.
The vision of the euROBIN network is to enable a European ecosystem of robots that share their data and knowledge and are able, based on their diversity, to jointly learn to perform the endless variety of tasks in human environments.
From robotic manufacturing for a circular economy to personal robots enhancing quality of life and outdoor robots for sustainable communities, the solutions presented address critical robotics domains and push the boundaries of innovation.
The network strongly interacts with and benefits from other collaborative EU-initiatives such as the AI DATA Robotics Association (ADRA) and the euRobotics association empowering the strength of AI & Robotics in Europe. It builds on and contributes to the assets on the AI-on-Demand platform.
Key figures
31 Consortium partners
24 Academic partners
7 Industrial partners
120+ researchers
19 ERC grants
60+ Network EU projects
14 Countries involved
26 European cities
Challenges
To support societies facing a multitude of challenges through AI-based robotics and automation, Europe requires an ecosystem of robots that can be quickly adapted to new needs, by easily transferring and spreading capabilities among application domains and between robot types. Hence, the European robotics research community needs to interconnect its best labs through network instruments, which facilitates the emergence of an AI-powered and cognitively enabled ecosystem of robots.
Addressing the main scientific and technological challenges hampering the breakthrough and large-scale deployment of robotics: euROBIN focuses on making cognition-enabled Robotics solutions more transferable and reusable among scientists and by new industries. This is crucial to better join forces in Europe in this dynamic and very competitive field.
Solutions
The project brings together leading experts from the European robotics and AI research community to share their algorithms and data. euROBIN provides a stage for cooperation and exchange of scientific knowledge and talents between the most outstanding robotics labs in Europe in the areas of knowledge representation, physical interaction, robotic learning and human-robot interaction.
The project will generate a nucleus to which the community at large can adhere, enabling ground-breaking new applications in industrial, personal and outdoor robotics in Europe.
This project is all about collaboration and teamwork:
- Between teams: Europe’s top roboticists are working together to push research forward.
- Between humans and robots: Using large language models, humans can give instructions to robots just by talking to them, and robots carry out tasks.
- Between robots: Robots share instructions and knowledge with each other, then act together or with humans.
For the first time in robotics research, euROBIN uses “coopetition” - a mix of cooperation and competition. In this new competition model, teams are rewarded not only for their own achievements but also for the reuse and impact of their shared modules via the EuroCore platform. This approach highlights the importance of collaboration and module transferability, paving the way for more scalable and versatile robotic technologies.
Impact
The euROBIN project is revolutionising the future of robotics and AI in Europe by fostering collaboration between humans, robots, and industries. By enabling robots to share knowledge, learn from each other, and adapt to new challenges, euROBIN is driving breakthroughs in robotic manufacturing, personal assistance, and sustainable outdoor applications. This interconnected ecosystem not only accelerates innovation but also empowers industries and improves quality of life for citizens. With its unique "coopetition" model, euROBIN is setting a global benchmark for collaborative robotics research, positioning Europe as a leader in the AI and robotics revolution.
The relevance of the scientific outcomes will be demonstrated in three application domains that promise to have substantial impact on industry, innovation, and civil society in Europe:
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Robotic manufacturing for a circular economy
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Personal robots to enhance life-quality and well-being
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Outdoor robots for sustainable communities
Testimonials
“At the cooperative competition (coopetition), robots were able to work with humans using Large Language Models (LLMs). Humans gave instructions by talking to robots, robots shared knowledge with each other, and they worked together with humans to complete tasks. Seeing humanoid robots not only following human instructions but also talking to other robots to get things done showed remarkable progress in the field. The energy and friendship between the teams were amazing. It’s inspiring to see the best minds in robotics across Europe coming together like this. Even though the project isn’t finished, what’s been achieved so far is impressive. euROBIN is already a success story, showing how Europe leads in robotics.”
Cem GULEC, Policy and Programme Officer, European Commission
Project euROBIN has received funding from the European Union's Horizon Europe Framework Programme.
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