Inside the Smart Factory Shift: Industry 5.0, AI on the Shop Floor, and the Humanoid QuestionWhat does the next decade of manufacturing really look like when factories are designed to be flexible, sustainable, and AI-literate from day one? In this episode, Vikramsinh Ghatge, Sr. Marketing Director and EIC at TechDogs sits down with Sangeet Kumar (Co-founder & CEO, Addverb) to unpack how Industry 5.0 changes the way factories and warehouses operate, why automation without rigidity is becoming the default, how sustainability is shaping factory design choices, and where humanoids make sense alongside tried-and-tested wheeled robots. If you care about turning AI from pilot projects into production-grade capability, this is your blueprint.We move beyond buzzwords to talk about what actually works on real shop floors: batch size of one, AI-enabled robots that can reason across tasks, and design principles that reconcile efficiency, flexibility, and energy performance. You’ll hear how Indian manufacturers are approaching AI adoption, where POCs stall, and what needs to be true for success stories to scale. You’ll also get a grounded take on humanoids: when legs beat wheels (stairs, uneven terrain, human-scale infrastructure), and where social acceptance, safety, and reliability shape the deployment choices.Why this conversation matters right now• Industry 5.0: The shift from rigid automation to human-centered, adaptable manufacturing is here. Factories are evolving from high-volume sameness to mass customization-while still demanding uptime, throughput, and quality.• Practical AI: Generative and reasoning models are entering the cell-not as shiny demos, but as assistive intelligence for robots, vision systems, and planning tools. The question isn’t “can we automate?” but “can the system adapt with minimal re-teaching?”• Sustainability as a design input: Energy, materials, recyclability, and “no-compromise greenery” are becoming part of the factory design spec-solar, smart building envelopes, and designing around existing trees instead of bulldozing them.• Humanoids vs wheels: Real deployments depend on the terrain, tasks, and environment. Biped and quadruped platforms unlock human-scale spaces and non-standard surfaces. Wheeled AMRs still dominate when the path is predictable.Who should watch:• Manufacturing leaders building a roadmap for Industry 5.0 transitions• Operations & factory design teams balancing flexibility, throughput, and sustainability• Automation and robotics teams evaluating AMRs, co-bots, quadrupeds, and humanoids• Data & AI leaders moving from pilot AI projects to production• Systems integrators & OEMs aligning value propositions to batch size variabilityAbout Sangeet Kumar:Sangeet Kumar is the Co-founder and CEO of Addverb, where he leads AI-enabled robotics and automation for real-world manufacturing and logistics. In this conversation, he explains how Industry 5.0 is pushing factories toward “automation without rigidity,” why flexibility and batch-size-of-one matter, and how perception-driven robots can adapt across tasks on the shop floor. He also shares a practical lens on sustainable factory design-solar, energy-aware layouts, preserving green cover-and gives a grounded view on when humanoids (and quadrupeds) make sense alongside wheeled AMRs in human-scale environments.About Discover Dialogues:Discover Dialogues is a thought leadership podcast where we bring in industry experts, innovators, and thought leaders to discuss the future of technology, business strategy, and digital transformation. From AI and cybersecurity to product leadership and identity management, our guests share their knowledge and experiences to help you stay ahead in the digital era.Drop your questions in the comments-what’s your biggest barrier to flexible automation or AI on your floor? For partnership or feature requests, connect with us via the channel “About” tab🌐 Visit us at: https://www.techdogs.com