Workforce, Labor

Sha Sajadieh, AI Index Lead, comments on HAI's 2026 AI Index findings.

Robots are becoming a core building block in engineering and healthcare applications, altering the way many industries operate, and improving quality of life for everyone. With AI, robots are further given the ability to learn and adapt so that they can work collaboratively alongside humans and other robots in real-world environments. This industry brief provides a cross-section of key research – at HAI and across Stanford – that leverages AI methods into new algorithms for human robot interaction and robot navigation. Discover how researchers are designing intelligent robots that learn and adapt to human demonstration, and how they could be used to disrupt and create markets in a wide range of industries including manufacturing, healthcare, autonomous vehicles, and many more.

This brief presents an analysis of Chinese AI startup DeepSeek’s talent base and calls for U.S. policymakers to reinvest in competing to attract and retain global AI talent.

"If you’re following AI news, you’re probably getting whiplash. AI is a gold rush. AI is a bubble. AI is taking your job. AI can’t even read a clock. The 2026 AI Index from Stanford University’s Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence, AI’s annual report card, comes out today and cuts through some of that noise."

AI will have a profound impact on work, business, and the economy. In this industry brief, we provide a sampling of key research both at HAI and more broadly at Stanford that can help inform the future of work. You will find researchers studying how AI can be used to help teams collaborate, improve workplace culture, promote employee well-being, assist humans in dangerous environments, and more.