The unassuming term “soft robotics” has recently made its way from the rarefied environs of academic journals and scholarly symposia and into the mainstream. 

Recent articles from publications as diverse as such as IEEE Spectrum, Forbes magazine and US News and World Report, along with wide reportage in the science blogosphere, speak to the level of interest in the subject. 

Clearly, we are on the verge of a soft robotics revolution.  But exactly what type of revolution?  Core academic research and accompanying videos are fine, but a revolution, at least for the readers of Robotics Business Review, requires that robotics technologies make for applications and some support for commercialization.  In that light, we will review this fascinating subject.