Researchers at the University of California San Diego successfully used teleoperated humanoid robots to perform gallbladder removals on large non-primate mammals.
The preclinical proof-of-concept trial, published July 8, 2026, in the journal Nature, involved two separate procedures. In the first, a human surgeon assisted a single teleoperated humanoid. In the second, two humanoid robots worked side-by-side to complete the surgery.
The team used 5-foot-tall, 60-pound robots nicknamed "Surgie" (identified by researchers as the G1). Engineers built custom adapters allowing the robots to grip standard surgical tools. The procedure, a gallbladder removal, requires dexterous instruments to perform fine tissue dissection.
The humanoids successfully completed the operations. According to UCSD assistant professor of surgery Shanglei Liu, the teleoperated humanoid matched the precision of specialized robotic surgical systems. However, the trial highlighted distinct hardware limitations. The robots required multiple recalibrations during the operations, significantly extending the time required to complete the surgery. UCSD researcher Michael Yip noted that the G1 robot's short arms lacked the range of motion needed to easily reach across a patient's body. Furthermore, the researchers are still working to reduce latency between the surgeon's controller movements and the robot's actions.
Specialized surgical platforms like the da Vinci system weigh up to 1,800 pounds, perform a narrow set of tasks, and require retrofitted operating rooms. Mobile, 60-pound humanoids cost significantly less and deploy easily into existing spaces. If engineers can solve the latency and calibration issues, general-purpose robots could eventually expand access to surgical care in rural hospitals, field medicine, and other under-resourced environments.