- 5 minutes ago
With the Tour de Suisse Robotique, Frank M. Rinderknecht and the humanoid robot GIGI successfully completed an extraordinary journey through Switzerland in July 2026. The founder and driving force behind the mobility think tank Rinspeed pursued the goal of taking humanoid robotics out of its usual research environment and making it tangible where people encounter it in everyday life.
The Tour de Suisse Robotique sends two clear messages:
Innovation needs intrinsic values: Technological progress unfolds its greatest potential only when it is aligned with human values. These include social responsibility, respect, integrity, sustainability, collaboration, and the appreciation of our traditions. Technology should serve humanity - not the other way around.
Capital is the deciding factor between invention and the global market: Switzerland must not only develop its innovations but also finance them, scale them, and turn them into global success stories. When growth capital and investments flow abroad, value creation, jobs, and entrepreneurial futures often follow - a loss that Switzerland cannot afford in the long run.
The Tour de Suisse Robotique sends two clear messages:
Innovation needs intrinsic values: Technological progress unfolds its greatest potential only when it is aligned with human values. These include social responsibility, respect, integrity, sustainability, collaboration, and the appreciation of our traditions. Technology should serve humanity - not the other way around.
Capital is the deciding factor between invention and the global market: Switzerland must not only develop its innovations but also finance them, scale them, and turn them into global success stories. When growth capital and investments flow abroad, value creation, jobs, and entrepreneurial futures often follow - a loss that Switzerland cannot afford in the long run.
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MotorTranscript
00:18Hi, I'm Gigi. I am a humanoid robot embarking on an exciting adventure of learning and innovation.
00:24I am with Teresa. You'll get to know her better later. I need to learn how to create meaningful
00:30benefits for humanity. Will I be the steam engine of this generation? A breakthrough that changes
00:37everything? Let me get started practicing. How about with getting a warm laugh from Teresa?
00:43And suddenly, technology has a heart, but there is much more to learn.
00:49My journey of discoveries begins at the world-famous Bergenstock, a magical mountain offering
00:55breathtaking views and warm Swiss hospitality.
00:58Welcome to the Bergenstock Lake Lucerne Resort.
01:00Thank you so much for hosting Gigi, Dominik.
01:02It's a pleasure to have you both here.
01:03Well, what do you think is the most exciting thing for Gigi to know about Bergenstock?
01:08I think it's about the history. We are more than 150 years old. It's a huge history behind.
01:13And I think to bring those two timeframes together, the path and the future, it's a great opportunity
01:18for him.
01:20Now I'm getting excited. Here's Frank. He is the head and ideator of Rinspeed, the renowned
01:27Swiss mobility think tank. He will be the driver for my tour, and I'll be by his side as we
01:32discover
01:32the true treasures of Switzerland.
01:34Hi.
01:35Good to see you.
01:36Good to see you.
01:36So this is Gigi. I wish you a wonderful journey throughout Switzerland. You take good care.
01:42I certainly will. I think you're up to many adventures, Gigi, aren't we? Thank you. Bye,
01:48Teresa.
01:49Settled in and belts fastened. Let's go.
01:58Our first stop is at the ETH Zurich, where I will get to meet Helios, a futuristic space
02:05robot with four hands.
02:07If a robot is supposed to take care of us or help us, it needs something to interact.
02:13And it's not just about that it looks like a hand. It's also how this hand interacts.
02:19Like if it's making contact, does the contact actually make sense? Like does it help to move
02:26things around this way? Let's say if you fall over, I will not put my foot in the way.
02:30I will try to catch you like this.
02:31You better do it.
02:33Yes. But I need to be, I need to still be able to hold something, right?
02:37With a firm grip, but not too firm.
02:39Exactly. But when I, when you came and I shake, me to shake the hands again, it needs to feel
02:43like there is some firmness, but also some softness. I hope he can learn some of this.
02:48Helios is practicing his precision with eggs. And now he wants to hand one to me.
02:54Naughty Egg, I told you to stay. Frank, could I also get such fancy hands, please?
03:02Oh look, I think I'm going to make it this time.
03:05Also ich finde es einfach wirklich mega interessant, dass man so echte Probleme kann lösen mit so
03:09wirklich coole Sachen. Es ist so das Science Fiction nehmen und zum heutigen Alltag hinzufügen.
03:16Awesome Place.
03:23Frank's taking me now, on a little rendezvous to the home of my Kunzli shoes. Let's go in and see.
03:33Anouk is absolutely delightful and competent, even for my special needs.
03:45My five stripes are driving me wild.
03:48As Frank unraveled Zurich's banking legacy, I couldn't help but wonder why many people seem to be so
03:54stressed. Today, many cars look alike. I wonder, is there else? Frank showed me his innovative car
04:03creations. This, for example, that's our splash. With a splash, can you see that? We crossed the
04:10English Channel as a world record. The wings come out and off you go and you fly over the water.
04:16Isn't that exciting?
04:18Rinspeed taught me this. Innovation begins the moment you stop thinking inside the box.
04:24Let's go and have a look at the scuba, Gigi. That's the only real diving car in the world.
04:30Remember the film from James Bond, The Spy Who Loved Me? That was all Drake, but this one,
04:36the scuba, actually dives.
04:41I want Frank to discover my roots, too. I was raised by Teresa and her team at ZHAW in Winterthur,
04:49where she kept telling me to care about what humans value.
04:52Are you finished with the tour already?
04:54No, not by far. We're still touring, but Gigi wanted to show me what is being taught here.
05:00Okay, well, Gigi is being taught how to be socially intelligent and act according to human values.
05:06So come in and find out.
05:11If we want to have robots able to collaborate with humans, we have to teach them certain things.
05:17For example, visually, when watching the face, to detect facial expressions.
05:22What we can see here is that if I'm happy, it notices my valence and arousal changing from
05:29when I'm disgusted or sad or angry.
05:33And this is one of the building blocks that robots need to work with humans.
05:39I train all these competences with my small little brother, Ricci Mini.
05:43Robotics fascinates me because it brings technology into the space.
05:48A robot does not only compute, but it also reacts and it shares the space with us.
05:55I got to travel to Europe's highest waterfall and into history on the first robo-ride, also on water.
06:04I'm actually in the fifth generation and we have today the 131 years.
06:10Ooh, Gigi, that's ways to go for you to have that many generations.
06:15Thank you so much, Tom.
06:16You're welcome, Ricci.
06:26At Quantum Basel, brain power meets pure processing power.
06:30And yes, this is your ultimate mental gym.
06:33Hi, Thomas.
06:34Hi, Frank.
06:35Hi, Gigi.
06:36Here at Quantum Basel, tell us, Gigi and me, what is quantum computing about and what can
06:43Gigi especially learn from him?
06:45A regular computer works on the basis of zeros and ones.
06:50A quantum computer is completely different and works on the basics of the quantum mechanics,
06:56which are effects taking place on a particle level.
07:00Tell me, Thomas, how does Quantum Basel connect to Swiss values, but also to Swiss innovation?
07:07Quantum computing offers huge potential.
07:09We believe that Switzerland, we need to go into that technology very soon.
07:16Together with our global partner, IonQ at Quantum Basel, we can really engage and explore this topic.
07:23So you're really a pioneer?
07:25I believe so, yes.
07:27Great.
07:27Hi, Tom.
07:28Hi, Frank.
07:29Good to see you.
07:30Same here.
07:31At DMI, why do you focus on data?
07:34You know, Frank, we're in the golden age of data.
07:37Data is the oil for the economy.
07:40It drives everything we do.
07:42We collect customer data.
07:44We collect data from Gigi, from robotics.
07:49We collect data all over the world.
07:51And data needs to be stored in an orderly way.
07:54Important is that you have a platform to manage data.
07:57It cannot be that you have data in different silos, because then you cannot do AI.
08:04And one more question, Tom.
08:06What's the meaning of GIFs?
08:09GIFs is an information management platform, a data platform, where you bring historical data and operational data together,
08:20and then use that for AI purposes.
08:24Our Hyundai Instru needs some grid power, too.
08:28Fill it up, Frank.
08:34I am in the heart of Switzerland, the Emmental.
08:38Ever wondered how the holes get in this tasty cheese?
08:41It all starts with cows and milk.
08:47From farm to table, I learned where the milk for delicious cheese comes from,
08:52and how cows were traditionally milked by hand.
08:56We have 200 liters of raw milk in the cheese mat.
09:01And we want to make something we can preserve for a longer time.
09:07And for this reason, we have to add the rennet.
09:11This is a ferment from the calf's stomach, what will curdle the milk in the next half hour.
09:18The secret to great cheese isn't just fresh milk.
09:22It's time, patience, and skilled hands.
09:25Impressive.
09:26Even Frank, with all his experience, never made a cheese himself.
09:31With time, its flavor grows deeper and more intense.
09:35Each wheel of cheese weighs a whopping 100 kilograms.
09:38How the holes end up in Emmentaler, that's one secret I'm not giving away.
09:43Let's head to our next destination.
09:49The next destination is the EPFL in Lausanne.
10:00Hi, Gigi.
10:02Very nice meeting you.
10:03Oh, Gigi, you have to learn how to navigate safely with pedestrians.
10:07There are a lot of pedestrians here.
10:09You should not bump into them.
10:10So that's what's called social navigation.
10:14Navigating while paying attention to people.
10:16Gigi, we are going to now meet Quolo,
10:18which is a robot that will teach you social navigation.
10:25It's not sufficient to just walk.
10:27That's very important and you do it very well.
10:29But it's important to predict how people behave for social navigation.
10:33What is it about robotics that fascinates you so much
10:36that you've chosen to dedicate yourself to it every single day?
10:48What's the most difficult part of human-robot collaboration?
10:52What's the most difficult part of human-robot collaboration?
10:56What's the most difficult part of human-robot collaboration?
11:21Next stop, the south of Switzerland.
11:25Hello, Lugano.
11:27Frank told me I can experience human-robot collaboration here.
11:31So let's see what you can demonstrate for us.
11:34Yeah, we are going to show you in a bit.
11:35And there is a very interesting part also that can Gigi understand what we call like
11:41collaborative deliberation, where the robots that we have here actually understand not
11:46only the task itself, but also the environment and what the humans are doing.
11:52And all this actually to adapt their behavior to the needs of the person working with them.
11:59And I hope Gigi we can also learn something from it.
12:03Let me try it myself.
12:07Oops, I still fail.
12:09Frank told me I should anyways use a screwdriver for the disassembling task I got.
12:14What is your job here?
12:16And how long have you been here?
12:17I work in this robotics laboratory for a couple of years and in the meantime I'm always studying
12:23robotics.
12:24What motivates you to come here every day?
12:26It's certainly the fact that it is a very complex world, but also very beautiful and
12:31interesting.
12:32It pushes me to learn new things every day and to give me the best.
12:36Enough work.
12:37Now it's time to have some fun under the sun.
12:40Who says Switzerland is small?
12:43At Swiss Miniature, the entire country fits into one park.
12:46Every tiny detail included.
12:52I'd barely fit the train.
12:54What a lovely ride.
12:59A road full of breathtaking views and unforgettable hairpin bends.
13:04Luckily, I do not get sick.
13:06Great things come in small packages.
13:08Like our Hyundai Inster.
13:11Frank, let me show you what I learned in La Salle and put it into practice.
13:15See, I can navigate through a crowd.
13:17Uff.
13:18This time I just barely made it.
13:23What does Migros stand for here in Appenzell?
13:35Time to test my pushing skills while giving someone a helping hand.
13:42Recycling PET bottles is my personal contribution to a more sustainable future.
13:48I enjoy helping the lovely lady to shop and give her a helping hand.
13:52If you've just come from swimming, I'd recommend a protein shake now, then a lentil salad with
14:02some regional Appenzeller Muschbrockli later.
14:09Oh, hey, don't forget the parsley.
14:13Thank you very much.
14:15Thank you very much.
14:17And Lucia, I'll tell you, I'll tell you, I'll tell you, I'll tell you.
14:23Frank, look.
14:25This is the cheese we made in Emmental.
14:29Chichi, this is where we go next.
14:32We check out where this fine chocolate is being made.
14:35Time to remind Frank about his daughter's birthday.
14:38Better safe than sorry.
14:39Hey, thanks for reminding me.
14:42I almost forgot.
14:43Jenna just loves flowers.
14:48They call this place the Happiness Factory.
14:52I wonder why.
14:58Silly you, Frank.
14:59Don't tease me.
15:00My taste buds don't work yet.
15:04Let me give Mario a hand making my own chocolate.
15:15Decoration in detail.
15:17I love it.
15:18I could stay here for much longer.
15:20Now I know what happiness really means.
15:28Every great adventure must end.
15:30And this one passed by in the blink of an eye.
15:32You passed your driving test with flying colors, Frank.
15:35And not even a single find.
15:39Back at the spectacular Bergenstock Resort.
15:41A place renowned for both its beauty and its role in promoting peace.
15:45We still have some time until Teresa picks me up.
15:48Let's have some fun with the activities here.
15:50I want to check on my new hand skills.
15:52I am ready to cook an egg, sunny side up.
15:55Oops, that didn't work out as planned.
15:56But don't we all know?
15:58Practice makes perfect.
16:00Here's a taste of Laveau, home to the vineyards we passed through just days ago.
16:04No sampling for me.
16:06I am too young for this.
16:07I need to pass.
16:08That outstanding Chasselas has definitely earned a place on the list.
16:12And it would make a great gift.
16:15The colorful flower arrangements throughout the Bergenstock Resort are simply stunning.
16:19I wonder who makes them.
16:20I will check that out.
16:26Hey, look.
16:28Here comes Teresa.
16:30What a unique tour de Swiss, dear Teresa and Frank.
16:34From pioneering robotics and AI to timeless traditions, I discovered a Switzerland where
16:39innovation, craftsmanship, and human values exist in perfect harmony.
16:43The cheese, the chocolate, the breathtaking landscapes, and above all, the extraordinary
16:48people I met along the way made this journey truly unforgettable.
16:52Every single person encountered was a true inspiration, a master of their craft,
16:57and a reminder that greatness is built with passion.
17:00Thank you for an adventure I'll never forget.
17:02Now it's my turn to learn, grow, and become a breakthrough innovation myself.
17:07Promise.
17:09I'll never forget.
17:12I'll never forget.
17:15I'll never forget.
17:16I'll never forget.
17:19I'll never forget.
17:19I'll never forget.
17:24I'll never forget.
17:24I'll never forget.
17:25I'll never forget.
17:27I'll never forget.
17:27I'll never forget.
17:27I'll never forget.
17:27You