In the past two decades the interest in minimally invasive techniques for transoral treatment of head and neck benign and malignant lesions has been growing due to the decreased morbidity of transoral approaches, and some surgeons have been moving away from traditional open resections. Transoral resection of neoplasms of the upper aerodigestive, by its minimally invasive nature, may afford a shorter hospitalization and recovery time for patients when compared to those patients who undergo traditional "open" surgery. In surgery of the oropharynx, hypopharynx, and larynx, transoral endoscopic surgery can provide similar outcomes in terms of local control of disease when compared to open procedures, while improving time to restoration of oral intake and shortening time to tracheostomy decannulation. Therefore, in select patients, a transoral surgical approach may afford clear advantages over traditional open approaches. Current techniques, however, are limited by the inability to attain direct line of site exposure of the lesion. Use of robot-assisted technology as a means to overcome surgical limitations, to provide surgeons with improved dexterity and precision, and to couple advanced imaging techniques with three-dimensional depth perception, may allow for the completion of transoral surgical approaches in patients for whom conventional technology has been suboptimal.