TechFirst with John Koetsier

Humanoid robots are coming into our homes, but they probably won’t be doing your laundry anytime soon. In this episode of TechFirst, host John Koetsier sits down with Jan Liphardt, founder & CEO of OpenMind and Stanford bioengineering professor, to unpack what home robots will actually do in the near future ... and why the “labor-free home” vision is mostly a myth (for now). Jan explains why hands are still one of the hardest unsolved problems in robotics, why folding laundry is far harder than it looks, and why the most valuable early use cases for home robots aren’t chores at all. Instead, we explore where robots are already delivering real value today: • Health companionship and fall detection for aging parents • Personalized education for kids, beyond screens • Home security that respects privacy • And why people form emotional bonds with robots faster than expected We also dive into OM1, OpenMind’s open-source, AI-native operating system for robots, and why openness, transparency, and configurability will matter deeply as robots move from factories into our living rooms. If you’re curious about the real future of humanoid robots — what’s hype, what’s possible today, and what’s coming next — this conversation is for you. 🎙 Guest Jan Liphardt Founder & CEO, OpenMind Stanford Professor of Bioengineering Website: https://openmind.com ⸻ 👉 Subscribe for more conversations on AI, robotics, and the future of technology: https://techfirst.substack.com ⸻ 00:00 Intro: The promise of humanoid robots at home 00:40 Meet Jan Liphardt and OpenMind’s OM1 01:12 Why your “labor droid” isn’t here yet 01:41 The “hand problem” and what robots can realistically do now 03:07 Why economics matters: $300/hour tasks vs. laundry and dishes 04:19 Robot hands today: reliability, repairability, and washing hands 05:16 LG’s laundry-folding demo and why fabric is still hard 06:16 Hospitals and hygiene: why “robot hand-washing” is unsolved 07:41 Hands as a separate system: compute, sensors, and integration 08:31 Why wheeled humanoids exist: hands first, body second 09:26 The real home use cases today: security, education, companionship 10:08 Aging in place: fall detection and remote nurse escalation 11:30 Real-world stories: parents living alone and why this matters 11:54 Privacy tradeoffs: robots vs. always-on home cameras 12:52 AIBO and why people get attached to mobile robots 13:52 Self-charging and the “my mom won’t plug it in” problem 14:21 Beyond falls: autism support and memory care 15:27 The education use case: “do my homework” vs. teach me 16:26 Personalized learning: what current classrooms miss 17:51 Why robot teachers beat screens for younger kids 18:46 Home security basics: unfamiliar face detection + alerts 19:15 Adding sensors: smoke, fire, sound, and anomaly detection 19:41 Quadrupeds vs. humanoids: cost, simplicity, and mobility 20:01 Safety issue: pinch hazards and kids hugging robots 20:46 What’s next for home labor robots 21:43 Why OM1 must be open source: transparency and trust 23:39 Why ROS 2 isn’t enough for human environments 24:37 OM1 approach: LLM-centric “Lego blocks” for robot behavior 25:43 Open-source humanoids for kids and why ownership matters 27:41 What’s missing: simulation is the bottleneck 28:11 Gazebo/Isaac Sim pain and the need for realistic sims 29:57 Why voice + “digital humans” matter in simulation 30:47 Tipping points: factories, warehouses, robotaxis, and humanoids 35:46 Wrap-up and final thoughts