The field of soft robotics has redefined traditional robotics with fully compliant, bio-inspired designs capable of thriving in diverse environments. However, research in recent years has shown mainly incremental advances, with various open questions to fundamental challenges remaining. To avoid stagnation and continue positive momentum, we must define a bold vision for the future. Our Research Topic focuses on leveraging embodied intelligence—a framework that emphasizes the dynamic interplay between body, brain, and environment—to tackle critical challenges and propel the field forward. We aim to establish both short-term (5-year) and long-term (10 to 20-year) moonshot goals, ensuring sustainable growth and positioning soft robotics at the forefront of technological innovation. By bringing together diverse voices from within and beyond the field, we seek to define an “Apollo moment” for soft robotics, through democratization, interdisciplinarity, and a collaborative vision for the future.
Soft robotics stands apart from mainstream robotics, introducing fundamentally new concepts for designing adaptable, bio-inspired robots. Since its rise in the 2010s, soft robotics has quickly progressed, allowing for robots that can navigate diverse environments. To prevent stagnation, we must set a bold vision for the field, with a focus on embodied intelligence—the dynamic relationship between body, brain, and environment—to expand the boundaries of soft robotics. This Research Topic aims to unite researchers and a broader audience to establish short-term (5-year) and long-term (10- to 20-year) moonshot goals, propelling soft robotics into the next technological wave.
The Research Topic’s goals are twofold:
1. Sustainable Growth for Soft Robotics: Define short- and long-term goals for sustained evolution, ensuring soft robotics becomes a lasting, impactful research area. Leveraging its unique capabilities, soft robotics can address major global challenges beyond the scope of traditional robotics.
2. Democratization of the Field: Promote inclusivity by identifying ways to make soft robotics more accessible, fostering interdisciplinary collaboration, and reshaping funding structures. Our aim is to create an "Apollo moment" for the community, creating a shared vision that makes the field more inclusive and widely accessible.
This Research Topic is linked to the workshop of the same name at the 2025 edition of the IEEE – RAS International Conference on Soft Robotics (Robosoft), taking place in Lausanne, Switzerland from the 23rd to 26th of April 2025. Authors who previously published their research as conference proceedings are welcome to submit to this collection but should include 30% original content to be considered. We also welcome other relevant contributions that were not submitted to the workshop.
Article types and fees
This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:
Brief Research Report
Data Report
Editorial
FAIR² Data
General Commentary
Hypothesis and Theory
Methods
Mini Review
Opinion
Articles that are accepted for publication by our external editors following rigorous peer review incur a publishing fee charged to Authors, institutions, or funders.
Article types
This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:
Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.
