OpenAI Disbands Standalone Robotics Team, Moves Staff Into Core Departments

November 14: Fortune magazine reported that OpenAI has disbanded its standalone robotics team and confirmed the restructuring to the outlet. Robotics researchers have been merged into the main research team led by Chief Research Officer Mark Chen, while the applied robotics and hardware teams have been placed under the Applied division headed by President Greg Brockman. OpenAI said the move is intended to accelerate robotics R&D with general-purpose models such as GPT-6 Astra, not to exit the field, and that its goal of its first public humanoid robot demonstration remains set for 2027.