# Robotics breakthroughs tracker

Real robotics firsts since 2025, newest first. Status: shown, priced, shipped, confirmed or setback. Last checked 2026-11-02.

- Oct 22, 2026 | 1X NEO | Priced: 1X says Early Access robots are shipping, with remote staff helping on hard chores Why it matters: No independent report yet of a NEO in a regular customer's home Source: https://startupfortune.com/1x-starts-delivering-its-20000-neo-home-robot-teleoperator-and-all/
- Oct 13, 2026 | Gemini 4 Argon | Shown: Google model watches a video of a person, then coaches a humanoid to 7 straight cornhole shots Why it matters: Points to robots learning new skills from ordinary video Source: https://humanoid.guide/?p=20386
- Oct 13, 2026 | Physical Intelligence API beta | Shown: PI opens its robot models to other companies' robots through a paid API Why it matters: Robot brains become a service any hardware maker can rent Source: https://www.pi.website/blog/api-beta
- Sep 29, 2026 | Flourish 1 | Priced: Wheeled two arm home robot opens preorders at $3,555; 50 units, shipping planned December Why it matters: Cheapest chore robot you can preorder; you teach it tasks by phone Source: https://interestingengineering.com/ai-robotics/flourish-1-3555-home-robot-for-chores
- Sep 24, 2026 | Eufy Omni C20 and X10 Pro Omni | Setback: US agency CISA warns of three flaws, worst rated 9.4 of 10; firmware update fixes them Why it matters: Shows robot vacuums need security updates like any connected device Source: https://securityonline.info/eufy-robot-vacuum-vulnerabilities-command-injection/
- Jul 30, 2026 | Gemini Robotics 2 | Shown: Whole body humanoid control; 22 joint hands tie a trash bag and unscrew a bulb Why it matters: Fine hand skills on real household objects Source: https://itbrief.co.uk/story/google-deepmind-unveils-gemini-robotics-2-for-humanoids
- May 29, 2026 | Dreame Cyber X | Priced: Stair cleaning version priced at 1,199 euros, with sales from September 2026 Why it matters: First stair climbing robot vacuum with a retail price, Europe only Source: https://www.notebookcheck.net/Dreame-Cyber-X-price-revealed-Cost-of-stair-climbing-and-cleaning.1310037.0.html
- Apr 30, 2026 | 1X NEO Factory | Shown: Hayward, California factory opens with about 10,000 robots a year of capacity Why it matters: 1X calls it the first US humanoid factory that makes its own parts Source: https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2026/04/30/3285118/0/en/1x-opens-neo-factory-in-hayward-ca-america-s-first-vertically-integrated-humanoid-robot-factory-with-consumer-shipments-planned-for-2026.html
- Apr 19, 2026 | Honor humanoid | Confirmed: Wins the Beijing half marathon in 50:26, faster than the human world record of 57:20 Why it matters: A big jump in walking and balance, though not in chores Source: https://www.wsls.com/news/world/2026/04/19/a-humanoid-robot-sprints-to-victory-in-beijing-beating-the-human-half-marathon-world-record/
- Apr 16, 2026 | Physical Intelligence pi0.7 | Shown: Uses an air fryer with no examples and folds laundry on a robot with no laundry data Why it matters: Skills combine and move between robots without retraining Source: https://www.pi.website/blog/pi07
- Apr 9, 2026 | Wybotics Osprey | Setback: CPSC recall of about 5,000 pool robots for battery overheating and fire risk Why it matters: Shows the battery risk as cordless pool robots spread Source: https://www.cpsc.gov/Recalls/2026/Wybotics-Recalls-Robotic-Pool-Vacuums-Due-to-Burn-and-Fire-Hazards
- Mar 3, 2026 | Physical Intelligence | Shown: Robot models with long and short term memory Why it matters: Memory is needed for chores with many steps Source: https://www.pi.website/research/memory
- Mar 2026 | Figure Helix 02 | Shown: Video shows Figure 03 tidying a living room at human speed with no remote control, per Figure Why it matters: Most capable home chore demo so far, but not checked by outsiders Source: https://www.notebookcheck.net/Figure-showcases-Helix-02-powered-humanoid-robot-cleaning-a-living-room-autonomously-at-human-speed.1246647.0.html
- Feb 23, 2026 | DJI Romo | Setback: One owner's login gave access to live video, audio and maps from about 7,000 vacuums Why it matters: Largest known exposure of home robot cameras Source: https://www.semafor.com/article/02/23/2026/robot-vacuum-hack-reveals-live-video-from-7000-customers
- Feb 11, 2026 | Apptronik | Shown: Raises $935M at about a $5B valuation Why it matters: A third humanoid maker lands a very large round Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/johnkoetsier/2026/02/11/apptronik-scores-935-million-hits-top-3-for-humanoid-robotics-funding/
- Jan 23, 2026 | iRobot | Setback: Picea completes its purchase of iRobot as the Chapter 11 case ends Why it matters: Ends 23 years of US ownership for the Roomba maker Source: https://media.irobot.com/2026-01-23-iRobot-Completes-Court-Supervised-Transaction-with-Picea,-Enabling-the-Next-Chapter-of-Growth
- Jan 14, 2026 | Skild AI | Shown: Raises about $1.4B at over a $14B valuation, led by SoftBank Why it matters: Largest single robot AI raise confirmed in this period Source: https://bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-01-14/robotics-startup-skild-valued-above-14-billion-after-softbank-led-funding-round
- Jan 6, 2026 | Roborock Saros Rover | Shown: Concept vacuum on wheel legs climbs stairs and cleans each step Why it matters: First wheel leg robot vacuum; still no price or sale date Source: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-01-06/robot-vacuum-maker-roborock-shows-off-stair-climbing-model
- Jan 2026 | Boston Dynamics Atlas | Shown: Production version of electric Atlas shown, with a Google DeepMind AI partnership Why it matters: The best known humanoid maker pairs with a leading robot AI lab Source: https://gigazine.net/gsc_news/en/20260106-boston-dynamics-google-deepmind-ai-partnership
- Jan 2026 | Figure Helix 02 | Shown: Figure 03 on Helix 02 unloads and reloads a dishwasher, walking and using both hands Why it matters: One model now handles walking and handling in a long kitchen task Source: https://kulturegeek.fr/news-346271/figure-ai-devoile-helix-02-ia-rapproche-robot-humanoide-lautonomie-totale
- Dec 16, 2025 | Physical Intelligence | Shown: Robot model learns tasks from video of people doing them Why it matters: Could make home training data far cheaper to collect Source: https://www.pi.website/research/human_to_robot
- Dec 14, 2025 | iRobot | Setback: Files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy; its Chinese manufacturer Picea agrees to buy it Why it matters: The Roomba pioneer ends up under Chinese ownership Source: https://www.theregister.com/2025/12/15/irobot_chapter_11/
- Dec 2025 | NVIDIA GR00T N1.6 | Confirmed: Open humanoid model weights released that combine walking and hand use Why it matters: Gives builders a free model for whole body control Source: https://huggingface.co/nvidia/GR00T-N1.6-3B
- Dec 2025 | 1X and EQT | Shown: Deal to place up to 10,000 NEO robots at EQT companies from 2026 to 2030 Why it matters: Largest announced order plan for NEO Source: https://thenextweb.com/news/1x-neo-humanoid-factory-hayward-10000-home-robots
- Nov 21, 2025 | Figure | Setback: Former safety head sues, saying the robots could fracture a skull; Figure denies it Why it matters: First major safety whistleblower case against a home humanoid maker Source: https://interestingengineering.com/innovation/figure-ai-faces-whistleblower-lawsuit
- Nov 20, 2025 | Physical Intelligence | Shown: Raises about $600M at about a $5.6B valuation Why it matters: Investors back a robot software company that makes no hardware Source: https://www.therobotreport.com/physical-intelligence-raises-600m-advance-robot-foundation-models/
- Nov 17, 2025 | Physical Intelligence pi*0.6 | Shown: Robot model improves from its own work experience using reinforcement learning Why it matters: Robots can get better on the job, not only from human examples Source: https://www.pi.website/blog/pistar06
- Oct 28, 2025 | 1X NEO | Priced: Home humanoid preorders open at $20,000 or $499 a month, with US delivery promised for 2026 Why it matters: First chore humanoid sold to consumers with a public price Source: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20251027434628/en/1X-Launches-NEO-The-Robot-Redefining-Life-at-Home
- Oct 9, 2025 | Figure 03 | Shown: Third Figure humanoid built for homes, shown doing laundry, dishes and tidying Why it matters: First big humanoid redesigned for homes; autonomy is a company claim Source: https://www.designboom.com/technology/humanoid-robot-figure-03-clean-houses-do-laundry-deliver-packages-real-person-10-09-2025/
- Sep 25, 2025 | Gemini Robotics 1.5 | Shown: Robot plans before acting on multi step tasks and moves skills between robot bodies Why it matters: Planning across steps is what household chores need Source: https://deepmind.google/blog/gemini-robotics-15-brings-ai-agents-into-the-physical-world/
- Sep 17, 2025 | Casio Moflin | Shipped: AI furry pet goes on sale in the US and UK at $429 after selling out in Japan Why it matters: A big electronics brand brings a comfort robot to US stores Source: https://betanews.com/2025/09/17/after-selling-out-in-japan-casios-429-moflin-ai-pet-launches-in-us-and-uk/
- Sep 16, 2025 | Figure | Shown: Raises over $1B at a $39B valuation Why it matters: Highest value for a humanoid startup in this period Source: https://www.vcaonline.com/news/2025091603/figure-exceeds-1b-in-series-c-funding-at-39b-post-money-valuation/
- Sep 2025 | Dreame Cyber X | Shown: Robot vacuum with tracked legs shown climbing stairs at IFA in Berlin Why it matters: First robot vacuum shown climbing stairs on its own Source: https://www.channelnews.com.au/ifa-2025-dreame-unveils-robot-vacuum-with-arms-and-stair-climbing-tech-as-european-sales-soar-139/
- Jul 25, 2025 | Unitree R1 | Priced: Full size walking humanoid launched from $5,900 Why it matters: First humanoid under $10,000, though built for developers, not chores Source: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-07-25/china-s-unitree-r1-is-a-humanoid-robot-costing-less-than-6-000
- Jun 24, 2025 | Gemini Robotics On-Device | Shown: Robot model that runs on the robot itself with no cloud connection Why it matters: Working offline helps privacy and speed in the home Source: https://deepmind.google/blog/gemini-robotics-on-device-brings-ai-to-local-robotic-devices/
- Jun 2025 | Hugging Face SmolVLA | Confirmed: Small open robot model trained on community data that runs on consumer hardware Why it matters: Robot AI no longer needs a data center Source: https://pureai.com/articles/2025/06/10/hugging-face-releases-smolvla.aspx
- May 2025 | Hugging Face SO-101 | Shown: Low cost open source robot arm for the LeRobot project Why it matters: Puts robot learning experiments within a hobby budget Source: https://gigazine.net/gsc_news/en/20250501-hugging-face-robotic-arm
- Apr 22, 2025 | Physical Intelligence pi0.5 | Shown: Robot model cleans kitchens and bedrooms in homes it never saw in training Why it matters: Shows a robot model can handle a new house, per the company Source: https://www.pi.website/blog/pi05
- Apr 19, 2025 | Beijing half marathon | Shown: First humanoid half marathon; the best robot takes over 2 hours 40 minutes and many fall Why it matters: A starting point for measuring how well humanoids walk and run Source: https://www.aljazeera.com/amp/sports/2026/4/19/humanoid-robot-breaks-half-marathon-world-record-in-beijing
- Mar 18, 2025 | NVIDIA Isaac GR00T N1 | Confirmed: Open humanoid robot model released at NVIDIA GTC Why it matters: Gives any humanoid maker a free starting model to build on Source: https://investor.nvidia.com/news/press-release-details/2025/NVIDIA-Announces-Isaac-GR00T-N1--the-Worlds-First-Open-Humanoid-Robot-Foundation-Model--and-Simulation-Frameworks-to-Speed-Robot-Development/default.aspx
- Mar 12, 2025 | iRobot | Setback: Roomba maker warns of substantial doubt that it can keep operating Why it matters: The company that started robot vacuums says it may not survive Source: https://www.fortune.com/2025/03/13/roomba-creator-irobot-amazon-going-concern-business-review
- Mar 12, 2025 | Google DeepMind Gemini Robotics | Shown: Gemini Robotics and Gemini Robotics-ER robot models announced Why it matters: Google enters the race to build general robot brains Source: https://techcrunch.com/2025/03/12/google-deepmind-unveils-new-ai-models-for-controlling-robots/
- Feb 20, 2025 | Figure Helix | Shown: Helix model runs two humanoids that put away groceries they had never seen Why it matters: Early sign one model can drive a humanoid through a home task Source: https://techcrunch.com/2025/02/20/figures-humanoid-robot-takes-voice-orders-to-help-around-the-house
- Feb 4, 2025 | Physical Intelligence pi0 | Confirmed: pi0 robot model released with open weights as openpi Why it matters: Anyone can now build on a general robot model from a leading lab Source: https://www.pi.website/blog/openpi
- Jan 5, 2025 | Roborock Saros Z70 | Shipped: Robot vacuum with a folding arm that picks up items under 300 g, like socks Why it matters: First robot vacuum sold with an arm, so it can tidy as well as clean Source: https://techcrunch.com/2025/01/05/roborocks-roomba-competitor-gets-a-robot-arm/
- Jan 2025 | Beatbot AquaSense 2 Ultra | Shipped: Pool robot shown at CES that cleans the floor, walls, waterline and water surface Why it matters: Pool robots start cleaning every part of the pool, not just the floor Source: https://eftm.com/2025/01/the-future-of-pool-cleaning-ces-2025-showcases-next-gen-robotic-cleaners-258948