Will Robots Save Us? A CES Discussion of Healthcare Robots

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January 22, 2026

In healthcare robotics, the challenges aren’t just related to hardware. Experts in the field need to wrestle with ethical questions, the availability of clean data, the integration of artificial intelligence and whether patients or caregivers should trust machines.

Speaking at CES earlier this month on a panel titled “Will Robots Save Us?,” IEEE Fellow Karen Panetta joined other experts to explore the current state of the industry, what’s holding it back and what’s moving it forward. Here are some of the highlights: 

Data Alone Isn’t Enough in Healthcare

The integration of robotics and artificial intelligence, often referred to as physical AI, is often discussed as a data problem. Experts simply need to collect enough information, train the system, and performance will follow. Or so the thinking goes. Panetta argued that data without context can be misleading, incomplete or even dangerous.

“I can’t tell you how many applications I’ve seen where the context of the data was not really understood. The sensors that we’re putting in all these robots are collecting lots of data, but you still have to understand the context. I really think that while we have beautiful robots, they’re only going to be as good as the data that we train them with.”

Why Robot Design Shapes Trust and Adoption

Beyond performance, Panetta emphasized that how a robot looks and behaves can directly influence whether people are willing to work with it.

“Right now we’re working at Tufts University with the dental school because they have robots going through delivering sterilized equipment, things like that. But then they also have patient advocates that they want to work with. We found that in different applications, if you’re working with humans, you want to resonate with them on a human level or emotional level, they are more comfortable with something that looks non-intimidating. So [a robot designed to be] small, furry, and cute — that works. In factory settings, people see these giant things powering over them. They get nervous and that’s a human-robot interaction problem.” 

The Need for a Human Backstop

It’s hard to say when autonomous robots will be involved in direct patient care, but the ethical questions around that time are being raised now, especially because they relate to surveillance, privacy and autonomy. Robots, like all digital tools, collect and store massive amounts of data. During the panel discussion, Panetta gestured to a robotic dog on stage built to provide patient companionship and monitoring, and questioned what information it might be gathering at that moment.

“I’m thinking, what data is she collecting on me? It’s difficult to collect data in health settings because of ethics and privacy issues.” 

The Robots Inside Us

In closing, Panetta pointed to an area of robotics that receives far less mainstream attention, but may ultimately have the greatest impact on healthcare.

“I think we’re going to see some great robotics inside the body that are going to be able to help with surgeries as well as our health.”

Explore More: If you want to see all the highlights from IEEE at CES 2026, check out these videos.