Applications are now open for the second Physical AI Fellowship cohort. Source: MassRobotics
The combination of artificial intelligence and robotics, or physical AI, promises to enable smart machines to comprehend and interact with the real world. MassRobotics, Amazon Web Services Inc., and the NVIDIA Inception program today opened applications for the second cohort of their Physical AI Fellowship.
The eight-week virtual program is intended to help robotics and physical AI startups from around the world scale faster.
“We’re proud to continue our collaboration with AWS and NVIDIA to support startups pushing the boundaries of what’s possible with physical AI,” stated Tom Ryden, executive director of MassRobotics. “This fellowship combines world-class technology resources with our deep robotics ecosystem to help founders scale faster and make a meaningful impact.”
Boston-based MassRobotics works with startups, academia, industry, and governments both domestically and internationally to accelerate robotics innovation, commercialization, and adoption. The organization provides entrepreneurs and startups with workspace, resources, programming, and connections.
Physical AI Fellowship to provide mentoring, support
Selected companies will have opportunities to use MassRobotics’ extensive global network of robotics partners, investors, and customers. They will also receive hands-on technical guidance from AWS Generative AI Innovation Center scientists and gain access to its AI stack.
Fellows are eligible for up to $200,000 in AWS credits and dedicated support channels.
“The Physical AI Fellowship has shown that we are ready to move beyond proof-of-concept to deliver tangible advancements in how machines perceive and interact with the physical world,” said Sri Elaprolu, director of the AWS Generative AI Innovation Center.
“These innovators are creating solutions that translate complex AI research into practical robotics applications-from manufacturing floors to healthcare settings to last-mile delivery,” he added. “By extending our partnership with MassRobotics and NVIDIA Inception, we’ll continue to accelerate the development cycle for physical AI technologies that can solve real business challenges and create entirely new categories of intelligent machines capable of adapting to unpredictable environments.”
In addition, selected companies will gain access to NVIDIA‘s robotics software stack and have one-on-one mentoring opportunities with company experts.
“NVIDIA’s open robotics platform supports developers throughout the entire lifecycle-from data generation and training to simulation and safe deployment,” said Deepu Talla, vice president of robotics and edge AI at NVIDIA. “In collaboration with MassRobotics and AWS through the Physical AI Fellowship, we’re empowering startups to leverage state-of-the-art technology and accelerate advancements in AI and robotics.”
2025 cohort benefited from guidance
The tailored technical support from fellowship partners enables businesses to accelerate innovation, optimize compute performance, and bring next-generation physical AI applications to market faster, said the partners.
During the inaugural 2025 program, each of the eight participating organizations engaged in bespoke engineering projects with AWS and NVIDIA experts, tackling challenges such as foundation model development, simulation optimization, and edge deployment. The first fellowship cohort included the following companies:
- Bedrock Robotics – Autonomous systems for heavy construction equipment
- Blue Water Autonomy – Long-duration autonomous vessels for ocean operations
- Diligent Robotics – Socially intelligent hospital service robots
- Generalist AI – Foundation models for adaptive, general-purpose robotics
- RobCo – Modular industrial automation for small and midsize companies
- Tutor Intelligence – AI-driven robotic labor for manufacturing and logistics
- Wandercraft – Robotic exoskeletons restoring mobility for patients worldwide
- Zordi – AI-powered greenhouse robotics for sustainable farming
“Building physical AI requires deep expertise across disciplines,” said Tom Eliaz, co-founder at Bedrock Robotics. “Through the Physical AI Fellowship, we partnered with specialists from AWS and NVIDIA who brought decades of ML [machine learning] and data science experience to our toughest challenges, helping us advance the core capabilities that will power autonomous construction equipment. Coupled with compute, technical support, and a cohort of like-minded companies, we advanced work central to Bedrock’s future.”
Physical AI Fellowship participants can gain access to resources at MassRobotics, as well as software and mentorship from AWS and NVIDIA. Source: MassRobotics
Apply now and learn more at AWS re:Invent
Organizations worldwide working in robotics, embodied AI, or intelligent physical systems can apply now for the Spring 2026 Physical AI Fellowship at www.massrobotics.org/physicalaifellowship.
MassRobotics, AWS, and NVIDIA welcomed founders and technology leaders from every region and industry to learn more and join the growing physical AI ecosystem.
Companies from the 2025 inaugural cohort will be at AWS re:Invent in Las Vegas as part of the Physical AI Showcase, an exclusive media demonstration.
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