by Gary Mintchell | Jan 14, 2026 | Commentary, Generative AI
Cal Newport’s year-end wrap-up of AI in 2025 echoes Dr. Seuss and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day.
Check out his podcast Ep 386: Was 2025 a Great or Terrible Year for AI? (w/ Ed Zitron). For added bonus points, read his newsletter Why Didn’t AI “Join the Workforce” in 2025?
Newport’s entre into the discussion:
Exactly one year ago, Sam Altman made a bold prediction: “We believe that, in 2025, we may see the first AI agents ‘join the workforce’ and materially change the output of companies.” Soon after, OpenAI’s Chief Product Officer, Kevin Weil, elaborated on this claim when he stated in an interview that 2025 would be the year “that we go from ChatGPT being this super smart thing…to ChatGPT doing things in the real world for you.” He provided examples, such as filling out paperwork and booking hotel rooms. An Axios article covering Weil’s remarks provided a blunt summary: “2025 is the year of AI agents.”
I’ve written to the founders of Axios about their use of click bait and misleading headlines. The content is often spot-on, but ignore the headlines. Aside from that, there was supposed to be a “hockey stick” growth curve in power and usefulness of Generative AI and Agentic AI. Heck, I even wrote a few columns on those relating to manufacturing.
The industry had reason to be optimistic that 2025 would prove pivotal. In previous years, AI agents like Claude Code and OpenAI’s Codex had become impressively adept at tackling multi-step computer programming problems. It seemed natural that this same skill might easily generalize to other types of tasks. Mark Benioff, CEO of Salesforce, became so enthusiastic about these possibilities that early in 2025, he claimed that AI agents would imminently unleash a “digital labor revolution” worth trillions of dollars.
Once again reality beats hype.
But here’s the thing: none of that ended up happening.
As I report in my most recent New Yorker article, titled “Why A.I. Didn’t Transform Our Lives in 2025,” AI agents failed to live up to their hype. We didn’t end up with the equivalent of Claude Code or Codex for other types of work. And the products that were released, such as ChatGPT Agent, fell laughably short of being ready to take over major parts of our jobs. (In one example I cite in my article, ChatGPT Agent spends fourteen minutes futilely trying to select a value from a drop-down menu on a real estate website.)
Voice of a skeptic:
Silicon Valley skeptic Gary Marcus told me that the underlying technology powering these agents – the same large language models used by chatbots – would never be capable of delivering on these promises. “They’re building clumsy tools on top of clumsy tools,” he said. OpenAI co-founder Andrej Karpathy implicitly agreed when he said, during a recent appearance on the Dwarkesh Podcast, that there had been “overpredictions going on in the industry,” before then adding: “In my mind, this is really a lot more accurately described as the Decade of the Agent.”
What I have been trying to parse out for all of last year in my AI interviews:
I’m hoping 2026 will be the year we stop caring about what people believe AI might do, and instead start reacting to its real, present capabilities.
For those trying to reach me with more AI hype—I am most interested in those pieces of actually useful AI that are helping people do their jobs while providing benefits to organizations. Let’s see more of that. I want to know what’s real.
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by Gary Mintchell | Jan 13, 2026 | Design, Marketing
I downloaded Apple’s latest operating systems OS26, iOS26, iPadOS26 with the famous redesigns.
After hearing so much about their development and betas, turns out that they are, well, OK. Not good. Not better. Not that bad. Just different. I think different just to be different.
The first third of my career involved roles in product development. These were mostly consumer products. I learned about looking for things to change in products in order to provide a better customer experience.
Oh, and also how to describe those changes to marketing—hoping they would stick to the facts and not overhype the changes.
I suspect that was Apple’s downfall with the changes. They tried so hard to explain all the great changes with explanations about how they worked. Don’t believe it. Mostly it was change because someone in management thought it was time for a change. The animations are cutesy without any real value or meaning. The new icons fail to add visual understanding. After I learn them, they will be lost in familiarity and—just OK.
Reminds me of a magazine publishing company where I worked. They changed the font and color of the company name and added a funky logo. Since these were not self-explanatory (which they should have been), they sent a three-page memo explaining all the changes. You know, what the color symbolized, what the logo represented (since it was hardly intuitive).
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by Gary Mintchell | Jan 12, 2026 | Automation, Data Management, Generative AI, Manufacturing IT, Software, Technology
Siemens seems to have found a home at CES over the past few years. I don’t know what it costs to give a keynote, but it’s probably well worth it, since no other major automation supplier seems to attend. I did write about a robotic exhibitor in my last post. Oh, and I’m still not likely to travel to Las Vegas for the next CES. I’ll save a ton of money and grief by receiving the news at home.
Siemens has maintained strong collaboration with Microsoft for decades—see all the Copilot news below. Recently, NVIDIA has joined the collaboration dance. Also, see news below. I think Siemens thought they’d gain penetration into the North American market through Chrysler’s acquisition by a German company plus the plants constructed by VW and BMW. That market is not so hot—see the proportion of sales into automotive by competitor Rockwell Automation, for example. Check out the customers featured by Siemens at CES this year: PepsiCo, Commonwealth Fusion Systems, Meta Ray-Ban, and Haddy.
Perhaps the best acquisition, and most successful, that Siemens ever made was with UGS years ago. While rivals have struggled with software (and competitors have nibbled at some of the Siemens applications), Siemens continues to strengthen Xcelerator and Copilot technologies. And check out the launch of Digital Twin Composer. Digital Twin technology and application seems to be finally gaining traction.
In short, Siemens announcements:
- Siemens and NVIDIA expand their partnership to build the Industrial AI Operating System, reinventing the entire end-to-end industrial value chain through AI – from design and engineering to manufacturing, production, operations, and into supply chains.
- Siemens launches Digital Twin Composer software, available on Siemens Xcelerator Marketplace mid-2026, to power the industrial metaverse at scale
- PepsiCo using Siemens Digital Twin Composer to simulate upgrades to its facilities in the U.S. with plans to scale globally
- Siemens unveils nine industrial copilots to bring intelligence across the industrial value chain
- Siemens highlights new technologies for accelerating drug discovery, autonomous driving and shop floor efficiency
“Industrial AI is no longer a feature; it’s a force that will reshape the next century. Siemens is delivering AI-native capabilities, intelligence embedded end-to-end across design, engineering and operations, to help our customers anticipate issues, accelerate innovation and reduce cost,” said Roland Busch, President and CEO of Siemens AG.
“Just as electricity once revolutionized the world, industry is shifting toward elements where AI powers products, factories, buildings, grids and transportation. Industrial AI is no longer a feature; it’s a force that will reshape the next century. Siemens is delivering AI-native capabilities, intelligence embedded end-to-end across design, engineering and operations, to help our customers anticipate issues, accelerate innovation and reduce cost,” continued Busch. “From the most comprehensive digital twin and AI-powered hardware to copilots on the shop floor, we’re scaling intelligence across the physical world, so businesses realize speed, quality and efficiency all at once. This is how we scale a once-in-a-generation technology shift into measurable outcomes.”
Siemens and NVIDIA are expanding their partnership to build the Industrial AI Operating System – helping customers revolutionize how they design, engineer, and operate physical systems. They will work together to build AI-accelerated industrial solutions across the full lifecycle of products and production, enabling faster innovation, continuous optimization, and more resilient, sustainable manufacturing. The companies also aim to build the world’s first fully AI-driven, adaptive manufacturing sites globally, starting in 2026 with the Siemens Electronics Factory in Erlangen, Germany, as the first blueprint.
To support development, NVIDIA will provide AI infrastructure, simulation libraries, models, frameworks and blueprints, while Siemens will commit hundreds of industrial AI experts and leading hardware and software. The companies have identified impact areas to make this vision a reality: AI-native EDA, AI-native Simulation, AI-driven adaptive manufacturing and supply chain, and AI-factories.
Integration with Siemens software.
Siemens also announced that it will be integrating NVIDIA NIM and NVIDIA Nemotron open AI models into its electronic design automation (EDA) software offerings to advance generative and agentic workflows for semiconductor and PCB design. This will both maximize accuracy through domain specialization and significantly lower operational costs by enabling the most efficient model to handle and adapt to every specific need.
Product Launch
Siemens’ primary product launch at CES 2026 is the Digital Twin Composer, available on the Siemens Xcelerator Marketplace mid-2026. This new technology brings together Siemens’ comprehensive digital twin, simulations built using NVIDIA Omniverse libraries, and real-time, real-world engineering data.
With the Digital Twin Composer, companies can create a virtual 3D model of any product, process, or plant; put it in a 3D scene of their choosing; then move back and forth through time, precisely visualizing the effects of everything from weather changes to engineering changes. With Siemens’ software as the data backbone, the Digital Twin Composer builds Industrial Metaverse environments at scale, empowering organizations to apply industrial AI, simulation and real-time physical data to make decisions virtually, at speed and scale. Digital Twin Composer is part of Siemens Xcelerator, an industry proven portfolio of software used by companies worldwide to develop digital twins.
Customer application of digital twins
PepsiCo and Siemens are digitally transforming select U.S. manufacturing and warehouse facilities by converting them into high-fidelity 3D digital twins that simulate plant operations and the end-to-end supply chain to establish a performance baseline. Within weeks, teams optimized and validated new configurations to boost capacity and throughput, giving PepsiCo a unified, real-time view of operations with flexibility to integrate AI-driven capabilities over time.
Leveraging Siemens’ Digital Twin Composer, NVIDIA Omniverse libraries and computer vision, PepsiCo can now recreate every machine, conveyor, pallet route and operator path with physics-level accuracy, enabling AI agents to simulate, test, and refine system changes – identifying up to 90 percent of potential issues before any physical modifications occur. This approach has already delivered a 20 percent increase in throughput on initial deployment and is driving faster design cycles, nearly 100 percent design validation and 10 to 15 percent reductions in capital expenditure (Capex) by uncovering hidden capacity and validating investments in a virtual environment.
New Industrial Copilots Streamline Manufacturing Operations
Siemens also spotlighted its partnership with Microsoft highlighting co-building the industrial copilot.
Siemens also announced that it is expanding its set of AI-powered copilots across the industrial value chain. This will embed intelligence that extends from design and simulation to product lifecycle management, manufacturing, and operations.
Siemens will deploy nine new AI-powered copilots for its software offerings, this will include Teamcenter, Polarion, and Opcenter. These copilots, respectively, streamline product data navigation, reducing errors and accelerating time to market; automate compliance, helping to ensure faster regulatory approvals and lower risk; and transform manufacturing processes, driving cost savings and operational efficiency.
These copilots, along with the rest of Siemens’ expanding portfolio of industrial AI solutions, are available to companies of every size on the Siemens Xcelerator Marketplace.
AI-Driven Innovations in Life Sciences, Energy and Manufacturing
- Siemens acquired Dotmatics whose Luma platform enables scientists to unify billions of data points generated across instruments and labs, creating a coherent foundation for AI-driven exploration. Combined with Siemens Simcenter simulation and digital twins, teams can rapidly test molecules, identify promising candidates, and virtually scale production to help life-changing therapies reach patients up to 50% faster and at a lower cost.
- Bob Mumgaard, CEO and co-founder of Commonwealth Fusion Systems, described how the company uses Siemens’ technologies as it leads the path to commercial fusion. Commonwealth Fusion Systems uses design software and a strong data backbone to help it accelerate the development of fusion machines that promise clean, limitless energy for generations to come.
- In manufacturing, Siemens announced a collaboration to bring Industrial AI to Meta Ray-Ban AI Glasses. With hands-free, real-time audio guidance, safety insights, and feedback, shop floor workers will feel empowered to solve problems efficiently and confidently.
- Haddy is reshaping manufacturing through AI-powered 3D printing and localized micro factories that deliver sustainable, high-quality products faster and closer to customers. Facing challenges around supply chain disruption, sustainability, and production agility, Haddy partnered with Siemens to streamline design, optimize operations, and scale efficiently.
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by Gary Mintchell | Jan 9, 2026 | Robots, Technology
I haven’t been to a general technology trade show for years. Going to the manufacturing mecca known as Hannover costs more than I wish to pay for the experience. My company exhibited at the old Comdex in Las Vegas and Chicago back in the late 80s-early 90s. That folded. Consumer Electronic Show (CES) replaced it as the huge tech show. I’ve never been. I’m not interested in TVs.
It’s still more expense and hassle than I wish to pursue to travel to Las Vegas for a huge show. However, more manufacturing technology companies exhibit there. I probably still won’t make the trip the first week of a new year. I do watch for news.
Something I never thought I’d see from CES was news about industrial robotics. This piece is a collaboration with Universal Robots, Robotiq, and Siemens. One trend is growing collaboration among companies. Another is digital twin or what once was called “cyber-physical systems.”
Universal Robots (UR), part of Teradyne Robotics, and Robotiq have unveiled a robotic palletizing solution at CES 2026 in collaboration with Siemens. The joint demonstration in Las Vegas highlights how advanced robotics and digital twin technology can accelerate industrial transformation for manufacturers worldwide.
The solution combines Robotiq’s PAL Ready palletizing cell with Universal Robots’ UR20 robot arm, integrated into Siemens’ automation hardware and new Digital Twin Composer software – launched at the event. Visitors to the Siemens booth #8725 in the LVCC North Hall will experience a digital-meets-physical showcase, where a fully simulated palletizing cell is rendered photo-realistically in real time and paired with a live hardware demonstration.
Designed to support a company’s operational needs, the system palletizes boxes of chips and beverages, leveraging digital twin analytics to optimize gripper performance and suction points dynamically. With data captured using Siemens’ Industrial Edge hardware, and then streamed to Siemens’ Insights Hub Copilot , the demonstrator provides real-time insights into cell behavior, reinforcing the theme of ‘digital AI meets physical AI’ and presents it in a real-time photorealistic environment built using Siemens’ new Digital Twin Composer software.
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by Gary Mintchell | Jan 8, 2026 | Automation, Software
I’m catching up on some pre-holiday news. Companies have been developing custom packages to (hopefully) make things easier for customers to know what to purchase and apply. This is a unique little package. Siemens is offering a starter pack for small and medium sized businesses in order to “enhance operational efficiency.”
The Siemens prelude and justification, “With the U.S. industrial sector projected to face 1.9 million unfilled jobs by 2032, according to Deloitte, and equipment failures causing up to 20% production losses, SMBs are under pressure from workforce shortages, costly downtime, rising operating costs, supply chain disruptions and the complexities of adopting Industry 4.0 technologies.”
“Small- and medium-sized manufacturers are the backbone of our economy and they are dealing with a different set of challenges compared to enterprise-scale manufacturers,” said Chris Stevens, president, Siemens Digital Industries, U.S. “Among these are transparency to performance, workforce readiness, technology integration, cybersecurity, and productivity.”
The offer
For SMB manufacturers navigating today’s complex production landscape, the Siemens Xcelerator portfolio offers a transformative solution. Its open digital business platform provides solution-as-a-service — and includes the innovative new SMB Production Optimization Starter Pack manufacturing software, which includes the Siemens Industrial Edge Management Cloud and Industrial Edge Virtual Device. These cybersecure tools empower end users to pay for what they need and scale at their own pace.
Siemens has made this digital transformation journey accessible through a three-month free trial, followed by an affordable annual subscription. This comprehensive package includes technical support, self-paced training, and the invaluable expertise of Siemens’ robust network of trusted partners across the U.S.
Siemens’ partners, including PROLIM, are instrumental in delivering the SMB Production Optimization Starter Pack to market, providing localized support, hands-on implementation assistance, and tailored guidance to ensure a truly seamless and supported digital transformation.
Typical of software press releases, here is the use case using cool generic terms. But I still think it’s a good idea.
The SMB Production Optimization Starter Pack provides real-time insights and flexible dashboards and reporting, empowering manufacturers to evolve from reactive problem-solving to proactive operational excellence. This integrated, modular solution is agile, flexible and scalable, and is designed for easy implementation without specialized IT skills or complex infrastructure changes.
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