Armies of humanoid robots are poised to march into the world’s factories. But before they’re ready to turn a wrench, they must solve what Elon Musk calls “the hands problem.” Creating the mechanical equivalent of the human hand is a challenge that has been stumping corporate and academic researchers for years. Replacing muscle and skin with motors and sensors is a critical step in making humanoids a versatile source of labor, potentially unlocking a global market that Morgan Stanley estimates could reach $5 trillion by 2050. “We’re setting 10 years as our goal to have dexterity, be functional and useful and able to do some of the things that humans do,” said Kevin Lynch of Northwestern University’s Center for Robotics and Biosystems, part of a federally funded consortium that is developing robotic hands for a variety of workplaces. “It’s not next year, that’s for sure.”

Full in-depth : How building robotic hands that match human dexterity remains a major technical obstacle to deploying humanoid robots in factories and for caregiving jobs.