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Sanctuary AI Takes Its Physical AI to Industrial Robots, Names Daniel Friedmann CEO
· Updated
Sanctuary AI, the Vancouver-based developer of general-purpose robots, said on June 17, 2026 that it is expanding its physical AI strategy to existing commercial industrial robots instead of waiting for humanoid hardware to reach commercial scale. The company described the approach as hardware-agnostic.
Wire-plugging result
According to Sanctuary AI, its AI achieved a task success rate of more than 99.5% on a wire-plugging production task at a cycle time of 2.54 seconds. The company said the result was validated on the live production line of a global Tier 1 automotive supplier, which it did not name.
The proof of concept involved inserting a plug while handling flexible material moving on a conveyor at full production line speed, Sanctuary AI said.
"Physical AI adoption is gated by AI that meets both performance and cycle time requirements. That's what customers are seeking, and that's what we are delivering," said Olivia Norton, Sanctuary AI's co-founder and chief technology officer, in the company's announcement.
Norton added that guiding a flexible wire into a moving target on a live conveyor is the kind of contact-rich dexterity problem that has kept such tasks out of reach for traditional automation, according to the release. Sanctuary AI said its roadmap still includes developing robotic hands alongside deploying its AI on existing industrial systems.
Leadership change
The strategy update came days after a change at the top. Sanctuary AI's board appointed Daniel Friedmann as chief executive officer, moving him from the role of chairman, the company said in an announcement dated June 16, 2026. The board thanked James Wells for his contributions to the company, according to the same announcement.
Sanctuary AI said Friedmann led aerospace technology firm MDA for nearly two decades and most recently served as CEO and chairman of Carbon Engineering. Canadian business publication The Logic reported that Friedmann had been board chair since November and a board member since June 2025, and that Carbon Engineering was sold to Occidental Petroleum for US$1.1 billion in August 2023.
Company background
The Logic reported that Sanctuary AI was founded in 2018, has raised more than $140 million and has about 140 employees. The company recently secured an undisclosed investment from Japanese chemical firm Zeon, according to The Logic.
The leadership change follows earlier turnover. The Logic reported that co-founder Suzanne Gildert left in April 2024 and that the board removed founding CEO Geordie Rose in November 2024.