For roughly the same price as a flagship smartphone, you could instead buy an affordable humanoid robot that's meant for consumer and educational use. Noetix Robotics, a Beijing-based startup, revealed its Bumi robot that's priced at nearly 10,000 yuan, or around $1,400.
Unlike higher-end robots, the inexpensive Bumi stands at around three feet tall and weighs about 26 lbs. You won't find Noetix's latest robot on assembly lines or in research labs, especially since early demos only show Bumi walking around and dancing. According to a TechNode report, Bumi will offer a programming interface that allows for learning or creative tasks. The report also noted that Noetix is planning to put the Bumi up for preorders later this year. Before the Bumi, Noetix Robotics showed off its expertise by competing in the world's first half-marathon for robots with its N2 model, which was one of four robotic competitors that completed the race.
At such a low price point, Bumi beats out another relatively affordable option that was announced earlier this year. In the summer, Unitree showed off its R1 robot that starts at $5,900 and could handle complex tasks. While the Bumi sets a new price tag to beat, both Noetix and Unitree are offering more affordable options than Tesla's Optimus bot, which had an early price estimate of around $20,000.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/chinese-startup-shows-off-a-dancing-humanoid-robot-that-starts-at-1400-174010960.html?src=rss
