<p>Last year, I visited a warehouse behind a typically fashionable San Francisco cafe where two startups, Bot &amp; Dolly and Autofuss, were busy making the insanely immersive visuals for the film Gravity (among a host of other projects) using naught but assembly line robots, clever software, and high-def cameras.</p><p>A few months later, I found myself in another warehousethis time some forty minutes south of the citywhere robotic arms, built and programmed by Industrial Perception, used advanced computer vision to sort toys and throw around boxes.</p><p>What do these companies have in common?</p><p>According to the New York Times, they were just secretly acquired by Googlealong with four other robotics firms over the last six monthsto design and build a fleet of next-generation robots under the direction of Andy Rubin, the former chief of Google's mobile operating system, Android.</p><p><a href="http://singularityhub.com/2013/12/08/google-officially-enters-the-robotics-business-with-acquisition-of-seven-startups/">Keep reading...</a></p><p>Read also:</p><p><a href="http://www.xbitlabs.com/news/other/display/20131204235511_Android_Creator_Now_Heads_Robotics_Projects_at_Google.html">Android Creator Now Heads Robotics Projects at Google.</a> (X-bit Labs)</p><p><a href="http://www.worldtvpc.com/blog/google-make-movements-in-robotics-industry/">Google Make Movements In Robotics Industry</a> (World Internet TV on PC (blog))</p><p><a href="http://live.drjays.com/index.php/2013/12/08/this-choreographed-disco-ball-from-google-is-the-future-of-robotics/">This Choreographed Disco Ball From Google Is The Future Of Robotics</a> (DrJays.com Live)</p><p>Explore: <a href="http://news.google.com/news/more?ncl=dtk3iaiPm3uappMHoBsEcYTP6-LrM&ned=us">25 additional articles.</a></p>