Home Automation AI News & Updates
1X Announces In-Home Tests of Neo Gamma Humanoid Robots Starting in 2025
Norwegian robotics startup 1X plans to begin testing its humanoid robot, Neo Gamma, in several hundred to thousand homes by the end of 2025. These initial tests will rely heavily on teleoperators—humans remotely controlling the robots—to gather data that will help train AI models for future autonomous capabilities.
Skynet Chance (+0.01%): While the development of humanoid robots represents a step toward embodied AI, Neo Gamma's heavy reliance on human teleoperators indicates we're still far from autonomous robots capable of independent physical action that could pose uncontrolled risks.
Skynet Date (+0 days): The early-stage nature of these humanoid robots, with their dependence on remote human operators and limited autonomous capabilities, doesn't significantly alter the timeline for potential AI risk scenarios; this represents an expected intermediate stage in robotics development.
AGI Progress (+0.03%): The introduction of bipedal robots into home environments, even with limited autonomy, establishes a platform for collecting real-world interaction data crucial for developing embodied AI systems that can physically operate in human spaces, a key component of general intelligence.
AGI Date (-1 days): The aggressive timeline for in-home testing (by end of 2025) slightly accelerates progress toward embodied AI by creating pathways for data collection in diverse home environments, though the heavy reliance on human teleoperators limits the immediate impact.
Figure Accelerates Humanoid Robot Home Testing to 2025
Figure has announced plans to begin alpha testing its Figure 02 humanoid robot in home settings in 2025, accelerated by its proprietary Vision-Language-Action model called Helix. The company recently ended its partnership with OpenAI to focus on its own AI models, and while it continues industrial deployments like its BMW plant pilot, this marks a significant step toward consumer applications.
Skynet Chance (+0.04%): Autonomous humanoid robots entering homes represents a notable step toward more integrated human-AI systems with physical agency, increasing potential control risks. However, the alpha testing nature and narrow focus on specific household tasks suggests these systems remain highly constrained.
Skynet Date (-2 days): The acceleration of home deployment timeline from what was previously expected suggests faster-than-anticipated progress in physical AI capabilities, potentially compressing the timeline for more advanced autonomous systems by removing anticipated hurdles sooner.
AGI Progress (+0.06%): The development of Helix, which integrates vision, language and action in a "generalist" model capable of learning new tasks quickly, represents meaningful progress toward more flexible AI systems with embodied intelligence. The ability to coordinate multiple robots on single tasks demonstrates advancement in complex planning capabilities.
AGI Date (-2 days): The accelerated timeline for home deployment suggests technical barriers to physical world interaction are being overcome faster than expected, potentially bringing forward capabilities needed for more general applications. The shift from specialized industrial settings to variable home environments represents meaningful advancement in adaptability.
Figure Unveils Helix: A Vision-Language-Action Model for Humanoid Robots
Figure has revealed Helix, a generalist Vision-Language-Action (VLA) model that enables humanoid robots to respond to natural language commands while visually assessing their environment. The model allows Figure's 02 humanoid robot to generalize to thousands of novel household items and perform complex tasks in home environments, representing a shift toward focusing on domestic applications alongside industrial use cases.
Skynet Chance (+0.09%): The integration of advanced language models with robotic embodiment significantly increases Skynet risk by creating systems that can both understand natural language and physically manipulate the world, potentially establishing a foundation for AI systems with increasing physical agency and autonomy.
Skynet Date (-3 days): The development of AI models that can control physical robots in complex, unstructured environments substantially accelerates the timeline toward potential AI risk scenarios by bridging the gap between digital intelligence and physical capability.
AGI Progress (+0.11%): Helix represents major progress toward AGI by combining visual perception, language understanding, and physical action in a generalizable system that can adapt to novel objects and environments without extensive pre-programming or demonstration.
AGI Date (-4 days): The successful development of generalist VLA models for controlling humanoid robots in unstructured environments significantly accelerates AGI timelines by solving one of the key challenges in embodied intelligence: the ability to interpret and act on natural language instructions in the physical world.