DeepMind’s AI humanoids are already doing factory work at Mercedes

Google DeepMind says robot maker Apptronik's Apollo 2 humanoids achieved a 96% success rate sorting automotive parts on active Mercedes-Benz production lines, using AI to handle preparation work that feeds vehicle assembly.

The company disclosed the proof of concept on Nov. 10, identifying sites in Kecskemét, Hungary, and Sindelfingen, Germany. The work provides a specific test for its Gemini Robotics 2.5 model: arranging the components needed by the people building cars.

The task was automotive kitting, which involves taking parts from bulk bins and organizing them in the order needed for each vehicle. DeepMind's example involved picking up metal brackets and placing them into sequencing containers. That ties the demonstration to a defined step in preparing an assembly line's supplies. The trays are meant to match the parts needed for each vehicle, so getting the sequence right is part of the task. The robot has to organize the components as well as move them.

Two models divided the work. Gemini Robotics ER tracked the workflow, while Gemini Robotics 2.5 controlled the robot's hands and arms, according to DeepMind.

Apptronik CEO Jeff Cardenas said in the announcement that the models improved after a few weeks of post-training and transferred to Mercedes production with little performance drop-off.

The relationship predates this result. In March 2024, Apptronik announced an agreement to explore uses for its original Apollo, including delivering assembly kits, inspecting components and transporting containers of kitted parts. It argued that humanoids could handle repetitive, physically demanding work in spaces designed for people, potentially avoiding a full factory redesign.

DeepMind calls the kitting autonomous, but does not define whether success means an individual pick, a completed tray or another unit. Its disclosure provides no trial count and does not report reset frequency, human-intervention rates, cycle times, uptime or operating costs.

For factory operators, the unanswered questions are how much work the robots finish in a shift and how often a person must step in to keep production moving.