Methodology
How entries make it into the Robot Brain Index, how we verify claims, and how we handle paid placements.
This page describes how RoboticsLibrary.com builds and maintains the Robot Brain Index. It exists so readers can judge the trustworthiness of every entry — and so we can be held to a consistent standard.
Selection
An entry is added when it meets at least one of these criteria:
- It has a primary source we can link to (paper, official documentation, repository, or first-party announcement).
- It is referenced by an existing source-backed entry as a dependency or alternative.
- It is materially relevant to the embodied-AI stack as of the entry's creation date.
We do not add entries based on vendor request alone, on marketing-only sources, or on rumor. Stub entries are allowed when an entity is notable but coverage is incomplete; they are marked as such.
Claim verification
A claim is a single factual assertion about an entity — for example, "Model X supports robot arms and humanoid platforms." Each claim is stored separately and carries:
- A statement in plain language
- One or more sources with URLs, publishers, and dates
- A confidence level (verified, likely, vendor-submitted, community-submitted, unverified)
- A last-checked date
- A status (active, contradicted, outdated, removed)
When a claim becomes outdated or is contradicted by a newer source, the original record is not deleted. It is marked superseded and the change is logged.
Scoring
Some entries carry an editorial Robot Brain Readiness Score. It is not a benchmark and is not scientific. It is a transparent rating built from these components:
| Component | What it measures |
|---|---|
| Evidence quality | Paper, demo, repo, benchmark, or deployment proof |
| Commercial readiness | Research only, prototype, or usable by companies |
| Hardware compatibility | One robot or many robot types |
| Documentation quality | Whether a developer can actually use it |
| Licensing clarity | Whether commercial use is allowed |
| Safety & transparency | Whether limitations and risks are documented |
| Update activity | Whether the project is actively maintained |
Each entry's score page shows the components and the date of the last assessment.
Vendor submissions
Anyone can submit a company or product profile via the vendor submission form. Submissions:
- Are queued for editorial review before going live
- Are labeled
vendor_submitteduntil an editor verifies them against primary sources - Cannot bypass editorial coverage by paying for a tier upgrade
- May be edited or rejected at our discretion
Vendors can request corrections to existing entries by contacting us; we treat correction requests the same as any reader's.
Paid placements
Some surfaces on RoboticsLibrary.com can be paid for. They are clearly labeled in all cases:
- Directory tier badges — companies that upgrade to a paid tier receive a "Verified vendor" or "Sponsor" badge on their profile.
- Sponsored newsletter slots — sponsor placements in the weekly Brief are marked as sponsored.
- Paid job posts — paid postings on the jobs board carry a "Paid" or "Featured" marker.
Paid placements never affect editorial coverage. We do not change scores, ratings, or claim verification in response to payment, and we will say so when asked.
Affiliate links
Some product and kit pages contain affiliate links. When a reader buys through one of these links, we may receive a small commission at no additional cost to the reader. Affiliate relationships are disclosed at the top of every page where they apply, and on the affiliate disclosure page.
Recommendations are based on usefulness for robotics learning and prototyping, not on commission rate.
Stale data
The Index runs a daily check on every entry's primary link. When a link breaks or a source goes dark, the entry is flagged for editorial review. Entries that cannot be reverified within a reasonable window are demoted to stub status or archived.
The change log on each entry shows every update made since publication.
Corrections
If you find an error, write to corrections@roboticslibrary.com with the entry slug and the specific claim or fact at issue. Corrections are noted in the change log of the affected entry, with the original record preserved.