Company profiles

Profiles of the companies building robots: what they make, how their robots learn, and what that means for the data behind them. Each profile is based on public sources, linked in the text.

7 profiles, newest first

A hand holding a white and orange Microduck upright on a wooden desk, between two laptops with code on their screens, while two people work in the background.
Profiles· 7 min read · Nov 9, 2026

Microduck: Pollen Robotics' Small Biped for Robot Learning

Microduck walks, picks things up with its beak and gets back up after a fall. The reason to take it seriously is that owners can train it to move differently.

Stephanie ChanRead the article →
An exploded view of Vibe 01 on a black background, with labels for its head, two arms with grippers, lift column, battery and wheeled base.
Profiles· 7 min read · Nov 6, 2026

Vibe Robotics: Putting a Hotel Robot to Work, One Towel at a Time

Vibe Robotics is building a wheeled, two-armed robot for hotel service work and proving it with a towel. Here's how Vibe 01 works, where the open-source Vibe A1 fits in, and why a folded towel is a harder test than it looks.

Cindy DizonRead the article →
A rendering of Franka's FR3 Duo: two white Franka Research 3 arms on a white and black column cart, reaching over a dark teal worktable with a purple and a green cube.
Profiles· 6 min read · Nov 4, 2026

Franka Robotics: Robot Arms for Manipulation Research

Franka Robotics builds force-sensitive arms for robot learning labs. Here's how the Franka Research 3 and the two-arm FR3 Duo compare, what buyers should know, and how DROID collected its demonstrations on Franka hardware.

Stephanie ChanRead the article →
Two members of Hugging Face's LeRobot team in Hugging Face T-shirts standing in front of a whiteboard on either side of a white Reachy humanoid robot in a striped top.
Profiles· 8 min read · Oct 28, 2026

Hugging Face: Bringing Open-Source AI Into Robotics

Hugging Face sells two Reachy robots from Pollen Robotics and gives away LeRobot, the software to train them. Here's how the platforms differ, what buyers should know, and why useful robot learning still depends on data quality.

Stephanie ChanRead the article →
Close-up of Boston Dynamics' Atlas humanoid robot: a round head ringed with white light above a white torso carrying the company's name, in a lab with yellow safety posts.
Profiles· 8 min read · Oct 11, 2026

Boston Dynamics: Teaching Atlas to Work Beyond Simulation

Boston Dynamics trains its electric humanoid in simulation first, then proves each skill on real hardware. Here's how Atlas works, where Hyundai fits in, and why the data from real-world trials decides how far simulation can take it.

Cindy DizonRead the article →
Apptronik's white Apollo humanoid robot, shown from the thighs up against a grey backdrop, raising its right hand.
Profiles· 7 min read · Oct 7, 2026

Apptronik: Building One Humanoid, Backed by NASA-Rooted Engineering

Apptronik has one robot, a handful of deep partnerships and a building where humanoids work all day to produce training data. Here's how Apollo works, how the company plans to sell it, and why the data matters as much as the hardware.

Cindy DizonRead the article →
The NEO humanoid robot standing in a sunlit sewing room beside a woman seated at a sewing machine, with a man walking through the doorway behind.
Profiles· 7 min read · Oct 5, 2026

1X Technologies: The Humanoid Built for the Living Room

1X sold a home humanoid to consumers before most rivals had left the factory floor. Here's how NEO works, how 1X plans to make money, and why the plan rests on data from real homes.

Cindy DizonRead the article →