🤖 Meet NEO: The $20K Humanoid Robot That Cooks, Chats & Carries Your Groceries
The American–Norwegian robotics and AI company 1X Technologies has unveiled its most ambitious creation yet — a humanoid home assistant robot named NEO.
With this latest innovation, the company aims to move humanoids beyond factories and research labs — bringing intelligent robots directly into our homes.
🌍 From Halodi to 1X: The Mission to Build “A Truly Abundant Society”
Originally founded as Halodi Robotics by CEO Bernt Børnich, the company rebranded to 1X Technologies in 2022. Its vision is bold — to create a truly abundant society through general-purpose robots capable of performing any kind of work autonomously.
🏠 What Is NEO? A Robot That Feels Right at Home
Weighing around 66 pounds (30 kg), NEO can lift over 150 pounds (68 kg) and carry up to 55 pounds (25 kg) — making it a practical helper for a variety of household chores.
Designed to blend into home environments, NEO features neutral tones, a soft knit suit, and even customizable shoes. It’s available in Tan, Gray, and Dark Brown, giving it an approachable, human-friendly appearance.
With a noise level of just 22 dB — quieter than a modern refrigerator — NEO promises to work silently in the background.
🦾 Smooth Moves & Smart Design
NEO’s body is built with soft polymer materials and 3D lattice structures, allowing safe interaction around people. It features 22-degree-of-freedom hands for precise and delicate motion, powered by 1X’s patented Tendon Drive high torque-density actuator system.
Connectivity options include WiFi, Bluetooth, and 5G, while a three-stage speaker setup in its chest and pelvis area doubles as a home entertainment system.
🧠 Powered by AI: A Robot That Listens, Learns & Remembers
At the heart of NEO is a built-in large language model (LLM) that enables natural conversation and contextual awareness.
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🎤 Audio Intelligence: Knows when it’s being addressed.
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👁️ Visual Intelligence: Recognizes objects like kitchen ingredients and suggests recipes.
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🧩 Memory Function: Remembers past interactions to personalize assistance over time.
Users can even schedule chores or train NEO for custom tasks with the help of 1X Experts.
💰 Price & Availability
NEO is priced at $20,000 (around ₹17.6 lakh) for early access units, with priority deliveries starting in 2026 in the US.
Alternatively, a subscription plan is available at $499 per month, offering flexibility for households that want to experience humanoid assistance without full ownership.
Global rollout is expected in 2027.
🚀 From Labs to Living Rooms
NEO marks a major shift — from industrial and lab prototypes to everyday home companions.
While challenges like safety, autonomy, and cost remain, NEO’s debut is a strong indicator of how close we are to real-life robotic assistants.
Experts predict that the humanoid and service robotics industry could exceed hundreds of billions of dollars in value over the next decade — and NEO might just be the robot that kickstarts that future.
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