NUS Researcher Jiafei: Open Source is Key to Robotics' ChatGPT Moment
DJiafei · x · 2026-08-02
In a recent interview, Jiafei, Presidential Young Professor at NUS, shared his journey in robotics. He built his first mobile manipulator at 16 using PVC pipes and Arduino, and now co-advises at UW while leading open-source VLA models like MolmoAct.
He emphasized that robotics' ChatGPT moment will not come from closed-door development. Just as ChatGPT was built upon open-source data and architectures, robotics requires a foundation of open-source tools and datasets to truly breakthrough.
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