Automation Highlights: December 2025 · AI Automation Society

Automation Highlights: December 2025

The Good

Automation is booming with practical, impactful wins:

U.S. manufacturers are all-in — 95% plan new automation by 2028, driven by labor shortages and reshoring. Workers and unions are increasingly supportive.

Real-world deployments shine: Agility Robotics’ Digit handled 100,000+ totes in warehouses; Logic Robotics unveiled a heavy-duty autonomous pallet mover; AI startup Serval hit unicorn status by automating half of enterprise IT tickets.

Markets are exploding — warehouse automation alone is headed toward $71B by 2033.

The Strange

Not everything is smooth or serious:

Tesla’s Optimus bot had a viral flop — dramatically falling backward in a demo, sparking fresh teleoperation conspiracy theories.

A YouTuber bypassed safety prompts to make a humanoid fire a BB gun, reigniting AI ethics debates.

U.S. lawmakers revived “No Robot Bosses” legislation to mandate human oversight in AI-driven hiring and firing.

Lingering CES weirdness (furry backpack robots, anyone?) reminds us automation can still veer into quirky territory.

Bottom Line

Automation is delivering massive efficiency and scalability gains, but the occasional stumble, ethical scare, and societal pushback show we’re still in the wild early phase. Exciting — and a little chaotic. 🤖🚀

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