Good morning. Artificial intelligence is moving out of the virtual world and into the real world—a transition known as physical artificial intelligence.
what does that mean? It no longer just works on computers or digital data, but enables machines to sense, think and act in the real world. Physical AI was a key topic discussed during the conference Fortune Brainstorm Technology Dinner Monday at CES 2026 in Las Vegas.
Andrew Nuska, Editorial Director wealthThe brainstorming series and author of Wealth Technology Newsletter, hosted a fireside chat Qualcomm President and CEO Cristiano Amon talks about this topic. Amon said he agreed NVIDIA CEO Jen-Hsun Huang predicts that physics AI will become the next big wave of artificial intelligence.
“It’s going to be huge,” Amon said. Physical AI is based on real-time sensor data. “You train what you see, what you feel, what you do,” he explains. This enables robots and self-driving cars, for example, to handle complex tasks, adapt to changing environments, and make split-second decisions as they move and interact with the world around them.
“We’re starting to see real applications of physical AI in the automotive space,” Amon continued. “When you think about assisted driving and autonomous driving, it’s a physical artificial intelligence problem. You have sensors and cameras looking at everything around you and telling the car when and where to go. We’re very excited about that.” Qualcomm has transformed into a major automotive technology provider, positioning itself as a key player in the industry’s shift to “software-defined cars.”
Amon explained that Qualcomm entered the automotive field because the company recognized the growing need for computing in vehicles, especially processors to assist driving. “You can’t put a server in the trunk of a car,” he said. “It consumes too much electricity and takes energy away from the car.”
To meet these needs, Qualcomm is focused on creating energy-efficient semiconductor designs that can handle massive computing loads, Amon said. Leveraging its consumer electronics experience, the company can integrate cameras, sensors and connectivity into a single piece of silicon, a design ideal for modern vehicles.
“The same factors that have made Qualcomm successful in automotive will also make us successful in robotics,” Amon said. He added that the discussion around physical AI will naturally extend to robotics, and he believes its impact will extend far beyond humanoid robots. At CES, Qualcomm released a full set of robotics.
one 2026 Technology Trends Report Deloitte explores how artificial intelligence and robotics are converging. “Robots powered by physical AI are no longer limited to research labs or factory floors,” the report states. “They are inspecting power grids, assisting in surgery, navigating city streets and working alongside humans in warehouses.”
Industry, regulators and potential adopters are working to remove barriers to large-scale deployment, according to Deloitte research. As organizations overcome these challenges, AI robots are expected to move from niche to mainstream applications.
Cheryl Estrada
sheryl.estrada@fortune.com
Ranking list
Pathak Appointed Chief Financial Officer Maketa Corporation Modern Card Issuance Platform (NASDAQ: MQ ), effective February 9. Kangwankij will succeed Mike Milotich as Chief Financial Officer, who was appointed CEO of Marqeta in September 2025, as previously announced. Kangwankij joins Marqeta from real estate technology company Roofstock, where he served as chief financial officer. Prior to that, she served as Head of Payments Finance and Strategy at Stripe. Kangwankij previously worked at JPMorgan Chase, starting in investment banking and serving as managing director and chief financial officer of the co-branded credit card and merchant services businesses during a nearly 15-year tenure.
Daniel Gabe Appointed executive vice president and chief financial officer Healthcare REIT (NYSE: HR), effective January 12. Effective 2024, Gabbay serves as Managing Director of RBC Capital Markets Real Estate Investment Banking Group. Prior to joining Royal Bank of Canada, he served as Managing Director of Barclays Real Estate Investment Banking Group. During a nearly 20-year investment banking career, Gabbay provided advisory and capital markets services to clients in the real estate industry.
event
ADP releases its latest National Employment Report Wednesday. Private sector employment increased by 41,000 jobs in December, reversing November’s employment decline, with the health services/education and leisure/hospitality sectors driving job gains; however, this was slightly lower than expected. The annual salary of employed personnel increased by 4.4%.
“Small businesses are actively recovering from November job losses with year-end hiring, even as large employers pull back,” ADP chief economist Nela Richardson said in a statement.
The official government jobs report for December will be released on Friday.
go deeper
“OpenAI launches ChatGPT Health to advance becoming a personal health data hub” wealth article by Sharon Goldman
Goldman Sachs writes: “OpenAI announced the launch of ChatGPT Health, a dedicated experience within ChatGPT that allows users to securely connect medical records and health apps such as Apple Health, Function and MyFitnessPal to further personalize conversations. OpenAI said it will not train its models on personal medical data.” You can Read the full article here.
overheard
“The board of directors unanimously believes that Paramount’s latest offer remains below our merger agreement with Netflix in a number of key areas.”
–Samuel A. Di Piazza Jr., chairman of the board of directors of Warner Bros. Discovery, said in a statement on Wednesday that the board once again unanimously recommended that WBD shareholders reject Paramount Skydance’s revised offer announced on December 22 and continues to recommend that shareholders approve the transaction with Netflix, wealth report.