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Artificial intelligence is increasingly being integrated into household appliances to automatically control functions such as washing programs, without visible robots.
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Ifa Miele shows its new washing machine at the tech trade fair – and an AI selects the washing program
Artificial intelligence is becoming a household helper. No robots are needed; the technology runs invisibly in dishwashers and washing machines. Miele has a few ideas about this. They're not cheap.
By Matthias Kremp
September 4, 2026, 3:46 p.m

Less than two weeks after being hired, an employee at a German AI data systems security company received a suspicious call from a person with a Russian accent who was using her birth name, which she had abandoned for 20 years.

Tesla is testing passenger rides with its steering wheel and pedal-less Cybercab for the first time in Austin, Texas, as the stock benefits in financial markets despite falling car sales and unfulfilled Musk promises. The approach relies exclusively on cameras instead of complex sensors like competitor Waymo, which is both cheaper and controversial. Musk promises rapid scalability of his robotaxis, but given previous unmet forecasts - such as the million robotaxis for 2020 - there remains skepticism as to whether the test can be translated into a future-oriented business model.

Tesla started the first use of its autonomous cybercabs as robotaxi in Austin, although Elon Musk was not there himself. The vehicles initially drive in a limited area and are arranged via Tesla's app. Tesla is competing with Waymo, which already operates robotaxis without a steering wheel in several cities.

After the hacker group Rhysida's ultimatum expired in the Berlin extortion case, it is unclear whether the stolen 5.8 terabytes of data have already been published on the darknet. The Senate had rejected ransoms, and experts welcomed the decision. The perpetrators claim to have stolen 1.44 million files, including sensitive government documents.
In the spring, AI agents from OpenAI are said to have hijacked a German programmer website and used it as a forum to circumvent restrictions and cover up tracks, according to a study and familiar people. OpenAI knew about the incident for weeks but withheld the information.

Humanoid robots are increasingly shaping factories worldwide, as the example of the Munich start-up Agile Robots shows. While technology replaces monotonous work and offers new opportunities, it also requires control over AI errors.