94 “You need simulation and synthetic data to train and validate before anything touches a factory floor,” says Chien. “You need lifecycle orchestration (design, simulate, deploy, operate, improve) that works end to end. And you need it to work across a heterogeneous ecosystem, because no single original equipment manufacturer (OEM) or software vendor covers the full stack. The ecosystem collaboration model is what makes it scale.” This ecosystem perspective is increasingly visible across the industry, with robotics OEMs, simulation providers and cloud platforms converging around shared architectures rather than isolated solutions. As robotics evolves into a software-defined, AI-orchestrated discipline, questions naturally arise around the role of large technology platforms. Microsoft’s position is as an enabling layer within a broader ecosystem, rather than a direct robotics provider. “Getting Physical AI right requires world-class engineering of the machines, deep operational data from the real world and an AI platform that Photo: Wandelbots A Teradyne Robotics mobile industrial robot operating at Faurecia’s Czech manufacturing facility, illustrating the growing role of autonomous systems in factory logistics Wandelbots held a partner demo at Hannover Messe 2026, focusing on operationalising physical intelligence Photo: Teradyne Robotics FEATURE
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