Largest robotics, AI show in North America in Chicago this week

Monday, June 22, 2026 6:17PM CT
CHICAGO (WLS) -- The largest robotics and artificial intelligence show in North America is currently in Chicago.

Whether they're making lattes, folding laundry or doing assembly line work, humanoid robots are the future and where money is going.



Adam, an autonomous dual-armed mixologist could be making cocktails in the future, in addition to coffee.

"It's a fixed workstation robot. Whatever equipment we put around it, the robot's able to repeat the task at a high level, over and over and over," said Aaron Montgomery, with Richtech Robotics.



Actions too dangerous for humans are also part of a growing sector of humanoid robotics.

Many are on display at McCormick Place's Automate show. Even robotic dogs are being developed as search dogs, going places too dangerous for real dogs and humans.

Dexmate's flexible robots cost about $70,000 each. For now, they are used in factories and warehouses. The goal for the future is to make the robots available for home use.

"This is multifunctional, which means that you can do it, can clean the carpet. It can also arrange the dishwasher," said Yuzhe Qin, co-founder and chief technology officer of Denmark.

But, as technology advances, there is the fear that humanoids will take the place of human workers. Association for Advancing Automation President Jeff Burnstein says all jobs are at risk if companies can't compete using the latest technology. He also says robots can take care of the busy work so humans can do their jobs.



"We're also seeing robots doing work in hospitals, so that the nurse can spend more time with the patient. The robot can go and get the prescription or go and get the meal," Burnstein said.

Some robots use the Ability Hand, developed by Loyola University and University of Illinois grad Dr. Aadeel Akhtar.

"We noticed that we could make a difference worldwide by starting a company that could commercialize the technology that I was developing as a student at the University of Illinois," Psyonic founder Akhtar said.

The bionic hand is created to match the dexterity of a human hand. It is also used as an easy on and off prosthetic for hundreds of people without limbs, including Dale DiMassi. He says the hand manipulates items so well, he can easily play baseball and pool.

"Most of the prosthetics that I wore before kind of felt like just poking at the world with a stick. This actually feels like it's a part of me," said DiMassi, Psyonic's creative marketing manager.



The show at McCormick Place goes through Thursday. It is free and open to the public for anyone over the age of 12.
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