We always wanted to bring these ideas and arguments to the forefront of the Soft Robotics community, and highlight many perspectives. That's why we started the soft robotics debate with the help of IEEE RAS and Soft Robotics TC.

In this audio, you are listening to the second debate "Bridging the Gap Between Soft Robots and Soft Materials: Discovering New Material Functionalities vs. Creating Architected Compliance There a gap still exists between cutting edge materials and implemented soft robots. In this debate, we will bring together experts in the fields of soft materials and soft robotics to discuss the necessary steps to bring more collaboration between these two fields. In this debate, panelists were trying to answer whether material development should focus on developing new functionalities for soft robots or on creating optimized materials to meet existing needs, allowing for easier rapid prototyping and technology transferability."

The first poll results are

Smart materials 27 %

Architectured compliance 4%

Gray zone 29%

No answer 40%

The second poll results are:

Smart materials 22 %

Architectured compliance 4%

Gray zone 42%

No answer 32%

Huge thanks to Hadi Sadati, Laura, Gina Olson, Alexis Simoes, Amy Reeder, Kathy Colabaugh, and Fumiya Lida, this debate was not possible without their dedication and effort.

We would love your feedback or any kind of contribution that you can provide so that we can pass this information onto the next debate so that series can grow and improve. I hope you enjoy listening