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Google's PaLM-SayCan project uses AI-based language understanding to tell the difference between ketchup and hamburger buns.

A Google PaLM-SayCan robot retrieves a bag of chips from a drawer in an employee kitchen area. The robot uses AI language processing to interpret human commands, then narrows down its range of possible responses using a set of about 100 general skills it's been trained to employ.

A Google PaLM-SayCan Robot grasps a Pepsi can to put into a recycle bin.

Google's robots, built by parent company Alphabet's experimental Everyday Robots division, have a collection of digital camera sensors, including a pair used for stereo vision depth perception.

Google's PaLM-SayCan robots are able to interpret human instructions, for example by fetching a sponge after a human asked for help with a spilled drink. The human didn't ask for a sponge, but the robot concluded that getting one would be the best way to help from the range of skills it was trained to handle.

Google trains robots to catch lacrosse balls, an exercise in precision and speed.

This Google robot slides rapidly from side to side along a track to bat a ping-pong ball back and forth with a human player. The work essentially helps Google improve robotic reflexes as the machines move through the real world.

An octet of Google PaLM-StayCan Robots practices manipulations like opening drawers and grabbing objects

A Google PaLM-SayCan robot carries a bag of chips to a human who requested it.

The Everyday Robots machines have a glowing green rim around their faces to signify when they're active. It changes color or switches off in other circumstances.

Items in Google's robotics offices, including this large Android statue, are labeled with black-and-white QR codes for roaming robots to scan.

A Google PaLM-SayCan Robot drops a Pepsi can into a recycle bin.

A suction-powered manipulator on a Google PaLM-SayCan robot knows just what objects to grab when asked to stack condiments in a blue tray.

Google's PaLM-SayCan means robots know which ingredients to use when instructed to "build a burger," though perhaps a human wouldn't actually put a ketchup bottle atop the burger patty.

A Google robot spots a sponge among items on a countertop, with intent to grab it.

A Google robot grasps for a sponge among items on a kitchen counter