A new general-purpose humanoid robot looks different from the other humanoids we’ve seen. Eve, a Norwegian entry from 1X, wears clothes, moves smoothly using wheels instead of galumphing around like a typical bipedal bot, and manipulates objects well.
Of course, our experience has led us to wonder, first, is this a better robot or just a better video? The makers say, “The video contains no teleoperation, no computer graphics, no cuts, no video speedups, no scripted trajectory playback. It’s all controlled via neural networks, all autonomous, all 1X speed.” If true, that’s an important distinction. Many of the impressive feats we’ve seen in videos of humanoid robots are mostly accomplishments of the videographers, not the robots.
Some observers have suggested that their smiley-face look is creepy. Others have complained that their hands are rudimentary. But they can actually pick things up, move them from place to place safely, and then go plug themselves into their chargers without a fuss.
The video below, showing Eve baking gingerbread cookies, might have involved a bit more human assistance; the description at YouTube doesn’t say (although it does include the recipe). Eve is shown completing a variety of tasks, but we don’t know how autonomous they are. We’re pretty sure she’s not just following the recipe.
A quick search for “Eve by 1X” will show you videos of Eve watering plants, throwing away trash, opening doors and windows…doing all kinds of actually useful things.
“1X’s mission is to provide an abundant supply of physical labor via safe, intelligent androids,” says the 1X website. “Our environments are designed for humans, so we design our hardware to take after the human form for maximum generality. To make the best use of this general-purpose hardware, we also pursue the maximally general approach to autonomy: learning motor behaviors end-to-end from vision using neural networks.”
How does she work?
Eve has been around since 2023. She’s a strapping lass, 6′ 1″ and about 190 pounds. She moves on three wheels, though a bipedal version may be in the works in the form of Neo, a smaller humanoid with legs.
Eve learns from humans, building on prior knowledge with artificial intelligence. She can also be controlled remotely. The makers say that one human can operate 15 Eves at one time.
It’s amazing how much motion control has progressed since the days when Indramat was the newest cutting edge technology. If you still use Indramat drive and control systems, though, you know that they still have that blend of power and precision that mad them so remarkable back in the day. We can provide the service and support you need to keep your Indramat machinery in service. Call for immediate assistance.