Unitree's $16,000 G1 could become the first mainstream humanoid robot

zohaibahd

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What just happened? You could soon own a fully functional humanoid robot for household chores without breaking the bank. Chinese robotics company Unitree has introduced the G1, a highly capable humanoid bot priced at just $16,000 for the base model and is now ready for mass production.

For years, Unitree has been offering robots that perform similarly to models from companies like Boston Dynamics – except at significantly lower prices. One example is the Unitree Go2, a Boston Dynamics Spot equivalent, which starts at just $1,600, compared to Spot's hefty $74,500 price tag.

Now, with the G1, Unitree appears to be employing a similar strategy of undercutting competitors. While details on its full capabilities are still limited, the specs and demos revealed so far are impressive for its price point.

Standing 4 ft. 3 in. tall and weighing 80 pounds, the G1 is compact but powerful. It can walk at 4.5 mph, jump, climb stairs, and even perform full-body spins and gymnastic moves with ease, thanks to its 23 degrees of freedom in the joints. In the promo video, it maintains balance like a pro, even when shoved or kicked. Another video shows it standing up from lying flat on the floor without using its arms.

The best part is that it seems to achieve all this at remarkable speeds and with a dexterity that rivals top athletes. Many of its joints also move in unique, non-human ways, enabling some impressive actions, such as folding up completely for easy transportation.

However, the G1 isn't just a show-off robot designed to impress your friends; it can genuinely assist around the home. A combination of sensors allow it to respond to voice commands and navigate your home autonomously. Additionally, the higher-end models come equipped with articulated hands that can grasp and manipulate objects, and even perform delicate tasks like soldering electronics.

While you'll need to pay extra for the premium models with advanced articulated hands, even the base G1 can assist with household chores. Unitree claims that the robot can learn new skills through "imitation and reinforcement learning," so in theory, you could teach it to cook, clean, do laundry, and more simply by demonstrating these tasks a few times.

Under its synthetic skin, the G1 features impressive hardware. The LED-ringed face houses 3D lidar and depth cameras for vision, along with a microphone array for voice control. It also includes a 9000mAh battery, providing up to two hours of use. With an output of 88 lb-ft of torque, its joints offer as much force as a small car.

While there's no word on the pricing of higher models, you can contact sales via the G1's website for more information.

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Convincing me to pay for and then install a fully independent, bipedal, Chinese-made, autonomous robot in my home is going to be a hard sell, but anyone or any organization with more money than sense would be thrilled to oblige.

Just look at the amount of people who have paid amazon and google to fill their home with eavesdropping devices.
 
I feel this is a great way to commit murder without getting caught… “it was the robot”!!!

I’m not sure I’d trust it to cook (do I really want it near open flames without supervision), but if it could do laundry and clean… probably cheaper than hiring a housekeeper for many households…
 
If CCP deems this a promising project, they could make the price of this robot so cheap that it might actually catch up like vacuum robots did. From there, this company could become the next DJI.

Some time later:
A Unitree robot quietly enters CIA agent's home office at night, and then uploads his work docs to a flash drive.

 
Well, China has always said they want to be the World's #1 economic leader. They became the World's #1 manufacturing leader not by themselves. While the West impose sanctions against China, China continues they're endeavor and waits. Perhaps China knows the West better then ourselves? But then, the trail will always lead back to politics.
 
Does it come with "The Three Laws"? LOL

More inexpensive Chinese junk? This thing is cheaper by 1/2 than all new vehicles. Of course it was manufactured with "slave" labor.
 
Absolutely amazing this is. “ I robot “ becomes a reality now. Please don’t forget to put a best AI available in to this thing and a decent source of power of course so that fakking thing will replace us at our jobs. The big corps are exited I guess as this shyt will never go on sick or come to work in a bad mood. I can now only wait for some ultimate retards who will reply to my comment to defend this amazing technological achievement made by us to replace us.
 
Unitree claims that the robot can learn new skills through "intimidation and force," so in theory, you could teach it to bully, break fingers, physically assault, extort and more simply by demonstrating these tasks a few times.... With an output of 88 lb-ft of torque, its joints offer as much force as a small car, enabling it to easily hit enemy humans for massive damage.
 
Absolutely amazing this is. “ I robot “ becomes a reality now. Please don’t forget to put a best AI available in to this thing and a decent source of power of course so that fakking thing will replace us at our jobs. The big corps are exited I guess as this shyt will never go on sick or come to work in a bad mood. I can now only wait for some ultimate retards who will reply to my comment to defend this amazing technological achievement made by us to replace us.
I am more positive about it. I think, if there was a sudden big drop in jobs, it would be that spark that would bring people together to do the things that would help us survive it.
There would be new taxes for top earners, there would also be new laws giving unprecedented bonuses and discounts for small and new businesses.
We would make it so people are rewarded for making new jobs.
I am a believer. This has not happened because we humans were always able to adapt: when farmer jobs were lost to tractors, when factory jobs were lost to mostly machinery. And many many more.
We either adjust, or finally stand together to make changes that would help us keep moving our society.
 
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