ASIMO
Honda·Japan·2000·Bipedal walking
History Collection
Most Influential Robots
Machines that changed culture, industry, or both.
7 robots·9 min read·History
Featured robots
Ranked entries in this collection.
ASIMO Atlas 
Atlas
Boston Dynamics·USA·2024·Bipedal locomotion
Spot 
Spot
Boston Dynamics·USA·2019·Quadrupedal locomotion
da Vinci Surgical System 
da Vinci Surgical System
95Intuitive Surgical·USA·2000·Teleoperation
Pepper 
Pepper
Aldebaran Robotics·France·2014·Facial expression analysis
Aibo 
Aibo
86Sony·Japan·1999·Vision
Optimus 
Optimus
Tesla·USA·2022·Bipedal locomotion
Influence is not the same as score. Some robots rewrote manufacturing. Others rewrote imagination.
“Influence is measured in imitators, not kilograms.”
7Robots
4Companies
4Technologies
2Countries
Key insights
Legacy test
If later robots copy your form factor, you were influential.
Timeline
- 1961
Industrial dawn
Factory arms invent a category.
- 2000
Cultural icons
Humanoids and companions enter living rooms and stages.
- 2020s
General purpose
A new wave claims the entire human workspace.
Related
Companies
Videos
8:01
Icons of robotics
Editorial media
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