Generative Bionics Unveils GENE.01, a Human-Centric Humanoid Robot Built on Physical AI

LAS VEGAS, January 6, 2026 — Italian robotics company Generative Bionics has unveiled GENE.01, its first humanoid robot concept, marking a significant step in the evolution of human-centric Physical AI. The concept made its global debut at CES 2026, introducing the visual, physical and technological foundation that will define the company’s future humanoid platforms.

GENE.01 represents the starting point of Generative Bionics’ industrial roadmap and follows the company’s recently announced USD 81 million funding round, one of the largest raised in Europe within the humanoid robotics sector. The unveiling signals the transition of the company from research and development into demonstration-led industrial deployment, with the first commercial robot targeted for launch in Q4 2026.

According to Generative Bionics, GENE.01 is designed around the idea that intelligence does not reside solely in software or a central processor, but is distributed throughout the body itself. The robot integrates whole-body tactile sensing, advanced mechatronics and AI into a single system, allowing perception, computation and action to operate in unison.

“Our aim with GENE.01 is to create a humanoid that is as efficient as it is intelligent,” said Daniele Pucci, CEO of Generative Bionics. “Inspired by the human body, intelligence emerges not just from the brain, but from the interaction between body, perception and movement.”

Touch as a Core Intelligence Layer

A defining feature of GENE.01 is its full-body tactile skin, which is not treated as a cosmetic layer but as a core component of the robot’s intelligence and safety architecture. The tactile system consists of a distributed network of touch and force sensors across the robot’s entire surface, enabling it to detect contact, pressure and micro-interactions in real time.

This approach allows the humanoid to adapt continuously to its environment, supporting safer physical interaction with people and objects in complex industrial settings. By treating touch as a primary sensory channel, Generative Bionics aims to move beyond vision-centric robotics toward systems that can learn and refine behaviour through physical experience.

The robot’s proportions, posture and motion are also engineered to encourage human acceptance, reflecting an Italian design philosophy where form, function and human interaction are tightly integrated.

Computing the Body Itself

GENE.01 is powered by a high-performance onboard computing stack supplied by AMD, which acts as both a technology partner and investor. AMD’s CPUs, GPUs and FPGA-based embedded platforms support real-time processing across perception, vision and control, enabling the robot to respond within milliseconds to changing conditions.

The Physical AI architecture is built on three core pillars:

Body as compute, where near-sensor and high-performance processing turns physical dynamics into a computational asset

Interaction intelligence through touch, integrating tactile, visual and force data at high frequency for responsive and safe operation

An open-source platform, leveraging open standards and toolchains to allow the Physical AI stack to be extended and evolved across the ecosystem

This architecture enables GENE.01 to go beyond executing predefined instructions, allowing it to learn from physical interaction, adapt behaviour over time and operate more fluidly in demanding environments.

A New Lineage of Industrial Humanoids

The name GENE.01 is derived from the word “gene”, symbolising the foundational unit of identity and inheritance. Generative Bionics describes the platform as the first seed of a new lineage of humanoid robots, optimised for different industrial use cases while maintaining a coherent identity in behaviour, form and interaction.

Over the course of 2026, the company plans to roll out a series of demonstrations as part of its industrial roadmap, progressing toward real-world deployments of autonomous humanoids in industrial environments.

With GENE.01, Generative Bionics is positioning itself at the intersection of robotics, AI and design, signalling a future where humanoid robots are not only intelligent, but physically aware, adaptable and designed to work safely alongside humans.