Since the end of August, videos of an incredible human-looking robot have been circulating on social networks. Some think it is a concept, with a human disguised inside, but it would indeed be a prototype of a humanoid.
A muscular male silhouette, in hooded jogging pants… Human gestures to accompany speech, the ability to grab objects, to take a human in one’s arms… Videos of the NEO robot, a creation of 1X Companyseem too good to be true. At least, that’s what many people have suspected since August 30, when the Norwegian company (which has since moved to San Francisco Bay) released the first official videos.
Since 2014, 1X has been making human-shaped robots. There have been the robot Evewith a much less realistic look, which uses wheels to move. With NEO, the company believes it can create a real home assistant capable of imitating human morphology. Among its backers is OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT.
NEO robot is not a human disguise, but mysteries persist
On the 1X website, we learn that the NEO robot is 1.65 meters tall, weighs 30 kilograms, can walk at 4 km/h, run at 12 km/h and carry up to 20 kilograms. Its autonomy is said to be 2 to 4 hours, which seems quite long for a product with such capabilities. 1X claims that its robot is designed with a “muscular anatomy instead of a rigid hydraulic system”which would give him abilities that resemble those of humans.
Is the NEO presentation video a scam, like the Tesla Optimus robot before (there was a human in a suit)? Everything suggests not. The NEO robot video is real and shows a working prototype, even if its capabilities remain a big mystery. Most robots are usually transparent, in order to show their mechanical functioning, 1X has chosen to keep everything secret. This logically amplifies the doubts, especially since there is no very few NEO videos on the web. In a laboratory extract, NEO seems much less natural than in the announcement video.
According to 1X, that OpenAI funds In order to give a physical presence to its language models, NEO can understand speech and body language in order to replicate gestures. It could thus guess that it should pick up an object that you point to. The company is targeting both the professional market and individuals, who may wish to have a personal assistant in the future.
Another proof of 1X’s seriousness, the NEO robot was already mentioned in April 2024 in a 33-page essay on the robotics industry. While he fantasizes about some aspects, everything suggests that NEO is based on real physical realities.
NEO exists, but does it work?
Boston Dynamics, Tesla, Xiaomi, and even Apple (there is talk of a team developing a domestic robot)… The big names in tech are seriously interested in robots that can help humans. The question is what form they will take… and whether people will want them. In the case of 1X, the company seems to be betting everything on a replica of the human body, which is not necessarily a guarantee of success. The question also remains how to ensure there are no bugs and how to make the robot truly practical. In short, even if NEO may be real, its usefulness and proper functioning remain to be proven.
Source: www.numerama.com
