From early mechanised human forms to today’s cutting-edge technology, this major exhibition revealed our 500-year quest to make machines human.

Featuring more than 100 objects – from automatons to science fiction film stars and the creations of modern research labs – this exhibition displayed the most significant collection of humanoid robots ever assembled.

Focusing on robots that are designed to resemble the human body, the Robots explored the creation of these humanoids and the insights they offer into our ambitions and desires in a rapidly changing world.

It shared how robots and society have been shaped by our understanding of the universe, the Industrial Revolution, popular culture and visions of the future. See early clockwork machines, a modern recreation of renowned British robot Eric, and stars of the silver screen including a T-800 endoskeleton used in the movie Terminator Salvation and a replica of Maria from the iconic 1927 film Metropolis.

Visitors learned about the latest innovations in robotics research and found out why roboticists are building machines that resemble us and act in increasingly human-like ways. They encountered some of the latest humanoids in action and came face-to-face with what a future shared with robots might be like.