A place in Detroit
to work with machines.
An open neighborhood building where Detroiters can use humanoid robots and AI tools, take classes, and move toward jobs or ventures.
Tech investment is landing downtown. Most people still can't touch the machines.
Michigan Central, the U-M Center for Innovation, TechTown, and a large Gilbert and Rocket commitment sit within a few square miles. Much of that work is downtown, degree-gated, or built for software. There is still no open, all-ages place to work with humanoid robots and serious AI tools.
The timing is practical.
A research-grade humanoid — the Unitree G1 — now starts around $16,000. Hardware that used to live only in labs can sit on a public floor.
Strong models are one browser tab away. The gap is access, practice, and instruction.
Gilbert and Rocket's commitment, funders like the McGovern Foundation, and workforce dollars are searching for durable places to land.
FutureWorks puts robots and AI in a public building.
A neighborhood space, open to walk in, where people practice with real tools and take the next step into work.
The hardware is here to use — touch, program, and repair — not display behind glass.
Youth, adults, seniors, job-seekers, and founders. Free drop-in and deeper cohorts. No degree required to enter.
Lab to course to cohort to a job or venture. Each door leads somewhere in Detroit's economy.
One building. Six rooms for practice and work.
Free to walk in. Steps that lead out to work.
All ages and starting points. Teaching stays practical. Need-based stipends help people show up.
What we aim to show by year three.
Reference points from peer programs: roughly 80% job placement and about $44,000 average starting pay; strong youth programs report around 90% post-secondary enrollment.