Robot hands are getting closer to human capabilities.

MIT scientists have developed a robotic hand system that can reorient more than 2,000 different types of objects. The technique combines artificial intelligence (AI) with training to program the hand, according to a recent paper published on the preprint server ArXiv. It's part of a growing effort to develop robotic hands that mimic human ones.

"These hands are very dexterous and capable of in-hand manipulation," Carmel Majidi, a professor of mechanical engineering and director of the Soft Machines Lab in Carnegie Mellon University's College of Engineering who was not involved in the paper, told Lifewire in an email interview. "That is, in addition to grasping and releasing objects, they can use their fingers to manipulate an object, such as a screwdriver or scissors."

Creating robotic hands with humanlike skills is a huge challenge. Scientists at MIT say their invention can manipulate everything from a cup to a can of tuna to a Cheez-It box, and can help the hand quickly pick up and place objects in specific ways and locations.