The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency is exploring the use of robots to respond to certain natural or man-made disasters, according to the San Antonio Business Journal.

Southwest Research Institute in San Antonio, Texas has been tapped to work with the National Institute of Standards and Technology to develop and test apparatuses used to evaluate international competitors in an upcoming Robotics Challenge Trials. DARPA plans to fund an effort to advance robotics technology to the point where “humainoid” robots can either augment or substitute human responders.