{"slug": "japanese-startup-bets-iron-man-inspired-homes-can-beat-humanoids", "title": "Japanese startup bets Iron Man-inspired homes can beat humanoids", "summary": "Tokyo-based startup MW plans to sell its first robot-equipped home in Tokyo by 2028 and build as many as 10,000 units a year by 2035, equal to 5% of new homes currently built in Japan, according to CEO Shuzo Narita. MW is embedding robotic housekeeping arms into ceilings and walls rather than building humanoid machines, taking a different path from the humanoid boom in China and elsewhere. The company bets specialized building-integrated machines can handle household chores more effectively than human-shaped robots navigating lived-in spaces.", "body_md": "Tokyo-based startup MW is offering homes with built-in robotic housekeeping arms, a counter to a global embrace of humanoids.\n\nMW aims to sell its first robot-equipped home in Tokyo by 2028 and build as many as 10,000 units a year by 2035, the equivalent of 5% of new homes now being built in Japan, according to CEO Shuzo Narita.\n\nJapan helped pioneer bipedal robots decades ago, but MW is taking a different path from the humanoid boom now sweeping China and much of the rest of the world. Instead of trying to build a human-shaped machine capable of navigating obstacles in a lived-in space, the startup is embedding robotics into buildings. It’s betting that specialized machines attached to ceilings and walls can more effectively tackle household chores.", "url": "https://wpnews.pro/news/japanese-startup-bets-iron-man-inspired-homes-can-beat-humanoids", "canonical_source": "https://www.japantimes.co.jp/business/2026/09/11/companies/robotic-housekeeping-arms/", "published_at": "2026-09-11 02:39:00+00:00", "updated_at": "2026-09-11 02:56:39.891420+00:00", "lang": "en", "topics": ["robotics", "ai-products"], "entities": ["MW", "Shuzo Narita", "Tokyo", "Japan", "China"], "alternates": {"html": "https://wpnews.pro/news/japanese-startup-bets-iron-man-inspired-homes-can-beat-humanoids", "markdown": "https://wpnews.pro/news/japanese-startup-bets-iron-man-inspired-homes-can-beat-humanoids.md", "text": "https://wpnews.pro/news/japanese-startup-bets-iron-man-inspired-homes-can-beat-humanoids.txt", "jsonld": "https://wpnews.pro/news/japanese-startup-bets-iron-man-inspired-homes-can-beat-humanoids.jsonld"}}