Overview
- UC San Diego published a peer‑reviewed study on July 8 reporting that teleoperated humanoid robots completed two live minimally invasive surgeries on large non‑primate mammals during a preclinical trial.
- Both procedures were controlled by human surgeons rather than autonomous software, with one operation done by a human‑robot team and the other by two humanoid robots working together.
- The robots, nicknamed Surgie, use Unitree G1‑based humanoid platforms adapted with physical tool holders, stand about five feet tall and weigh roughly 60 pounds, and fit into standard operating‑room workflows without major room retrofits.
- Researchers recorded clear technical limits that lengthened procedures, including repeated recalibrations, controller‑to‑robot latency and constrained reach, and they say next steps are engineering improvements, longer‑distance teleoperation tests and expanded preclinical and regulatory trials.
- If those hurdles are overcome the team says humanoid teleoperation could lower cost and footprint compared with current specialized surgical systems and help deliver surgical care and support tasks in rural, disaster, battlefield or space settings, although clinical use remains years away.