You Can Buy This Cartwheeling Humanoid Robot for Less Than Two Apple Vision Pros

0
8K

“Dance for me, robot,” you scream at your mechanical servant from your gilded throne. “Now flip for me, robot. Fight for me, robot.” That’s the future that China-based robotics maker Unitree is offering with surprisingly dexterous bots like the new R1 model. It is nearly as tall as a human, has decals and a mask that remind me of a scaled-up Power Rangers action figure, and is built with AI voice recognition and the ability to do flips. Even with all that, the real surprise is the cost. The Unitree R1 is only $5,900. If that still seems expensive, know that it’s actually less than the cost of two $3,500 Apple Vision Pros.

The R1 is built with both image and voice recognition AI, according to Unitree. Beyond that, the model is built with a “movement-first design” for “dynamic, lifelike mobility.” You can witness the robot’s dexterity in a video posted by the company on Friday. The machine can do handstands and cartwheels, punch at the air, and sprint over level ground. It’s enough to make me envious of the machine’s athleticism, although it doesn’t seem to come with any fine finger dexterity, so at least the robots won’t be taking my number one spot as king of the high-fives.

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v1Q4Su54iho[/embed]

We’ve seen other Unitree humanoid and dog-shaped robots in the field, though only in carefully contained demos controlled by an engineer sitting somewhere off to the side. The R1 costs nearly half of the company’s previous consumer-end human-shaped bot, the G1. The new design is also far lighter than the previous model, clocking in at 25 kilograms, or 55 pounds, compared to the G1’s 77 pounds.

If you’re looking for specifics, Unitree told us the robot has 26 total joints, with six in each leg, two in the waist, five in each arm, and two in the head. Despite that, the R1 isn’t built to become your robo butler. The device is still mostly there for prototyping and testing. That certainly won’t stop people from forming their own robot boxing leagues to try and reenact the 2011 movie Real Steel starring Hugh Jackman. Untiree already hosted a fisticuffs tournament with its G1 models earlier this year. Perhaps we won’t have to wait long for a bot with a screw loose after taking a shiner to the silicon.

There’s no R1 listing on the company’s store page just yet, so maybe you should cool your jets before dropping close to $6,000 on a new robot. More than pushing a future where the robots fight off the inevitable return of Rita Repulsa, it establishes how far ahead Unitree is compared to the U.S.-based competition.

Elon Musk’s Tesla is still working to pump out a consumer-end humanoid robot called Optimus. Tesla has tried to promote its bot as a real-life Rosey from the Jetsons. They’ve had the bot pouring drinks and cleaning dishware, though at a very slow pace and with a human controller standing off-screen. Tesla claimed it plans to produce 5,000 Optimus bots by the end of 2025, but that’s looking less likely every day. A new report from The Information states that more than halfway into the year, Tesla has only created a few hundred bots after reportedly halting production in mid-June. Musk recently claimed Tesla will have Optimus gen 3 prototypes available by the end of the year, and then it will scale production. Even if it follows through—which seems less likely considering ongoing staffing and resource issues cited by Fast Company—the robot will likely be nowhere near as cheap as Unitree’s bot and its cartwheeling, karate-chop action.

Like
Love
Haha
3
Search
Categories
Read More
News
Chính thức từ bây giờ, người dân có thể được hoàn tiền BHYT nếu nằm trong 3 trường hợp này
3 trường hợp được hoàn tiền BHYT Tính đến 31/12/2024,...
By SnooShortcuts5771 2025-07-20 08:49:05 0 9K
News
Chính thức từ ngày mai, hàng triệu người dân Hà Nội sẽ chứng kiến một sự thay đổi lớn
15 nhóm tiện ích miễn phí tại điểm phục vụ hành chính...
By cherryishairy 2025-07-31 02:32:04 0 9K
Tech
Elon Musk Establishes a New Political Party to Take on Trump and the GOP
As he had previously vowed, Tesla CEO Elon Musk...
By mistermuesli 2025-07-05 20:27:03 0 10K
Food
Marry Me Bean Soup Recipe
Marry Me Bean Soup RecipeIngredients:1 pound dried white beans (such as Great Northern, Navy, or...
By Google 2025-02-12 19:59:38 0 18K
News
10 ngày nữa, một bước đột phá trong cải cách hành chính sẽ thành hiện thực liên quan đến sổ đỏ
Từ 1/7/2025, cấp xã được cấp sổ đỏ lần đầu cho người...
By BettieBackshots 2025-06-20 08:36:04 0 11K