In a provocative cover story, WIRED has christened 2025 as the “Year of the Humanoid Robot Factory Worker,” spotlighting a watershed moment when bipedal robots move from research labs into real manufacturing lines. Fueled by advances in AI, perception, and actuation, prototypes like Boston Dynamics’ Atlas, Agility Robotics’ Digit, and Tesla’s upcoming Optimus are poised to tackle tasks traditionally reserved for human hands. WIRED’s analysis examines the technological breakthroughs that make humanoid factory deployment feasible, chronicles early pilots across automotive, electronics, and consumer-goods plants, and explores the economic, social, and regulatory implications of integrating humanoids alongside human workforces. As companies wrestle with labor shortages, supply-chain hiccups, and the quest for lean automation, humanoid robots promise unprecedented flexibility—potentially performing any task a human can do without expensive custom tooling. But this transition also raises profound questions about job displacement, safety standards, and the very nature of work in the coming decade.
