# A startup taught humanoid robots to retrieve packages, climb stairs, and unpack boxes, no human steering needed

_Friday, July 10, 2026 at 8:00 AM EDT · Robotics · Latest · Tier 2 — Notable_

![A startup taught humanoid robots to retrieve packages, climb stairs, and unpack boxes, no human steering needed — Primary](https://www.techspot.com/images2/news/bigimage/2026/06/2026-06-30-image.jpg)

Swiss startup Flexion Robotics said it has developed a system that enables humanoid robots to perform multi-step tasks such as retrieving packages, climbing stairs and unpacking boxes without human steering. The company, founded by former Nvidia researchers, teaches robots basic physical skills through simulation and uses a higher-level AI model to decide which skill to call up and when. The approach contrasts with many current demonstrations in which robots are guided by teleoperation. Flexion trains its top-level model by feeding it videos of humans performing everyday tasks, allowing the model to learn the logic and sequence of actions while separate learned behaviors handle physical mechanics. In one demonstration, a humanoid robot completed a sequence on its own after receiving a single instruction to retrieve a delivered package, navigate stairs and an elevator, unpack the contents and place items into a drawer. Reinforcement learning drives the system from high-level planning down to motor control, according to cofounder and CEO Nikita Rudin. ABI Research analyst George Chowdhury said the real progress lies in AI models rather than hardware and estimated robot foundation models could represent a $150 billion opportunity by 2036. Flexion said it is working with multiple robotics manufacturers and has designed its system to operate across different humanoid platforms.

## Sources

- [techspot.com](https://www.techspot.com/news/112938-startup-taught-humanoid-robots-retrieve-packages-climb-stairs.html)

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Retrieved: 2026-07-11T04:53:18.597Z
Publisher: Tech & Business (techandbusiness.org)