🔓 Remix Reality Insider: Perception Is the New Battleground

Your premium drop on the systems, machines, and forces reshaping reality.

🛰️ The Signal

This week’s defining shift.

Perception systems are becoming a priority for physical AI investment.

Perception sits at the base of the physical AI stack. These systems interpret sensor data, map environments, track objects, and give machines the awareness they need to act safely and reliably. They turn raw signals into understanding, which makes every other layer in the stack possible. The recent funding momentum reflects a clear belief that better perception will decide how far physical AI can scale, how many tasks it can take on, and how confidently it can operate in the real world.

This week’s news surfaced signals like these:

• Archetype AI has raised $35 million and introduced Newton, a model that works with real-world sensor data. Newton is already being used in warehouses, on construction sites, and in city systems to help teams keep track of operations and spot safety issues.
• Sensetics secured $1.75 million to advance its high-fidelity touch platform, which captures, edits, and streams tactile data from robots, medical tools, and wearables. Its system mimics fingertip sensitivity and treats touch as structured information for AI and automation.
• Exwayz raised €1 million to scale its GPS-free 3D localization software. Its LiDAR-only SLAM solution delivers centimeter-level accuracy and is powering autonomous trucks at the Port of Rotterdam and large-scale mapping projects across the U.S.

Why this matters: Stronger perception leads to practical gains in the field. Robots avoid simple mistakes. Autonomous vehicles get clearer information about what is happening on the road. VR headsets track movement in a steadier way. These improvements are why more companies are putting money into this area right now.

🧠 Reality Decoded

Your premium deep dive.

Immersive video is entering a true second wave. Tools are better, workflows are smoother, and creators have more room to experiment than they did a decade ago. Light Sail VR, an Emmy-winning creative studio based in Los Angeles, has worked through every stage of the medium’s growth for over a decade. Co-founder Matthew Celia sees this moment as a meaningful step forward, shaped by better cameras, clearer pipelines, and renewed support from the major platforms.

Here are a few of the key takeaways from our interview with Matthew Celia:

• Stronger tools: Cameras like Blackmagic’s Ursa Cine Immersive and Canon’s EOS VR system have raised the technical ceiling. Higher pixel density and better capture pipelines are giving creators more room to deliver work that feels sharper and more present. Light Sail VR has been rebuilding its entire production environment to support these capabilities.
• Platform investment: Apple, Meta, Samsung, and Google are driving the medium forward with new formats, funding programs, and headset support. Celia sees this as a real signal that major players believe immersive video is an important part of the content mix. These investments are drawing traditional filmmakers back into the field.
• Economic reality: The audience size is still modest, and revenue models remain thin. Funding comes mostly from platform investment rather than direct consumer demand. But immersive video holds attention. People who watch immersive video make a clear choice to focus on it. They put on a headset and give it their full attention, which is very different from how most people watch other online videos.

Key Takeaway:
Immersive video is gaining momentum because the fundamentals have improved. Cameras are better, workflows are smoother, and major platforms are investing in the format again. After years of uneven progress, the foundation is now stronger and more dependable than it used to be.

📡 Weekly Radar

Your weekly scan across the spatial computing stack.

🤖 UBTECH Kicks Off Walker S2 Robot Production, Targeting 500 Units in 2025

• UBTECH has started production and delivery of Walker S2 robots, with 500 units planned for 2025 and over 800 million yuan in total orders.
• Why this matters: Hitting 500 units this year and scaling to 10,000 by 2027 only works if these robots deliver more than hardware. UBTECH’s shift to full deployment solutions is what makes those numbers possible.

🏥 Distalmotion Secures $150M to Expand Robotic Surgery Platform in U.S. Outpatient Market

• Distalmotion closed a $150 million Series G round led by Revival Healthcare Capital to scale the U.S. rollout of its soft tissue robotic surgery system.
• Why this matters: Ambulatory Surgery Centers are fast-growing outpatient centers. Distalmotion is betting that DEXTER’s speed and portability make it a strong fit for these cost-sensitive surgical settings.

🏭 Agile ONE Brings Full-Body Humanoid Robotics to the Factory Floor

• Agile ONE is a full-size humanoid robot that navigates factory floors, adapts to workflows, and performs tasks autonomously.
• Why this matters: Combining a full-size humanoid body, precise hands, and clear communication tools into one industrial robot is a major step toward real-world deployment.

🏎️ A2RL to Host World’s First Six-Car Autonomous Race in Abu Dhabi

• Six autonomous cars from Germany, Italy, and the UAE will compete wheel-to-wheel in the A2RL Grand Final on November 15 for a share of $2.25 million.
• Why this matters: Autonomous racing is turning the track into a proving ground for machine intelligence. It has the potential to change how we think about speed and competition and redefine what it means to be an athlete, a team, and a fan in the age of intelligent machines.

🌐 8th Wall to Shut Down After Seven Years of Advancing WebAR

• 8th Wall will shut down in 2026, with access ending February 28 and hosted projects supported until February 2027.
• Why this matters: 8th Wall is the latest in mobile AR platforms to end its service. In November of this year, Adobe Aero shut down, and on January 14, 2025, Spark AR by Meta Platforms ceased operations. This moment signals a turning point as the industry moves from mobile AR toward AI creation pipelines and the growing headset ecosystem.

👓 Snke Unveils Purpose-Built AR Glasses Tailored to Surgical and Clinical Demands

• SnkeXR launches as an open platform headset built to meet strict medical standards and support surgical precision.
• Why this matters: SnkeXR stands out because it’s designed specifically for medical use, not adapted from consumer AR.

🧤 1HMX Launches Nexus NX1, a Full-Body Control Platform for Robotics and Simulation

• Nexus NX1 combines haptics, motion platforms, and robotic footwear for high-fidelity human-machine interaction.
• Why this matters: Immersive technologies are proving they can do more than simulate. As we enter the era of physical AI, systems like Nexus X1 point toward a future where human presence powers real-world machines.

🌍 Cisco Invests in Spatial Intelligence Leader World Labs

• Cisco has invested in World Labs through its venture arm, marking the startup’s largest strategic funding to date.
• Why this matters: Cisco's move signals a deeper commitment to owning the infrastructure layer for spatially aware AI systems, which represent the next era of AI.

🗺️ SenSen Partners with Point One Navigation to Boost Location Accuracy in Smart City Systems

• SenSen will use Point One Navigation’s positioning network to add real-time, centimeter-level accuracy to its smart city systems.
• Why this matters: By fusing high-precision GPS with AI-driven situational awareness, Point One and SenSen are turning static infrastructure into responsive systems. It’s enabling machines to use spatial context to make meaningful decisions in the real world.

🛍️ Meta Opens Its Fourth Retail Location with Meta Lab NYC

• The Fifth Avenue space showcases Meta’s latest AI glasses and VR gear, with in-store exclusives and hands-on demos.
• Why this matters: With wearables still a new consumer category, physical retail plays a key role in giving consumers a chance to go on with AI and XR tech. It is also necessary for glasses that require fittings and IPD measurement.

🌀 Tom's Take

Unfiltered POV from the editor-in-chief.

AI has eaten the digital world. It has pulled in huge investment, reshaped workflows, and created and demolished entire startups. But all of this is happening behind a screen. LLMs live in the digital space. They can only learn from what we have documented and stored online. They don’t see the real world, and they don’t act in it.

The next big opportunity is changing that. Physical AI brings AI out of the computer and into everyday environments. Instead of systems that only answer questions, search online, or generate content, we get systems that watch what is happening, understand the situation, and take action. This is what unlocks robots that can handle real tasks, autonomous vehicles that read the road in real conditions, and immersive systems that react to people and space with much more accuracy.

This shift opens the door for machines that help with real work. Machines that respond to what people are doing, not just what people typed. Machines that can improve safety, support workers, and take on tasks that depend on real-world awareness.

This is where the next wave of progress will come from. The impact AI has had on the digital world is now moving into the physical one. And that shift is much bigger than a better chatbot. It is about using AI to actually change things in the real world.

Physical AI is the next frontier. It’s where the next big opportunity is.

🔮 What’s Next

3 signals pointing to what’s coming next.

1. Robots Built for the Unpredictable
   Galbot’s new models help robots handle objects with better control and move through new spaces by following spoken instructions. Disney Research’s work focuses on teaching bipedal robots to fall safely and protect important parts when they hit the ground. Both developments show robots becoming better at dealing with real-world conditions and staying functional when things don’t go as planned.
2. Robotaxis Expand Rapidly Across the U.S.
   Waymo’s rollout into five new cities and Zoox’s public debut in San Francisco show robotaxi services moving into more urban markets. Waymo is activating rider-only operations across Miami, Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, and Orlando, while Zoox is opening its purpose-built robotaxi to the public in key San Francisco districts. Both signal a broader national push to bring autonomous ride services to everyday streets.
3. Coco Robotics Extends Its Delivery Footprint
   Coco Robotics is adding more cities to its delivery service. The company is now operating in Chicago and Miami through partnerships with Uber Eats, Shake Shack, and DoorDash. Its robots deliver food, groceries, and retail items as part of existing ordering systems. Coco Robotics has completed over 500,000 deliveries and plans to put more robots on the street in 2026 as it continues to expand in the U.S.

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🛠️ This newsletter uses a human-led, AI-assisted workflow, with all final decisions made by editors.