Agility Robotics says its new factory will start producing humanoid robots by the end of the year.
Agility calls its RoboFab facility in Salem, Oregon the world’s first factory for mass producing humanoids. According to the Salem Reporter, Agility plans to hire 500 people to produce the Digit robots.
The 70,000 square foot factory can produce up to 10,000 robots per year. In its first year, RoboFab plans to build hundreds of Digit robots, with more to follow as production increases.
The 5-foot-9 digit carries up to 35 pounds and works 16-hour days. Introduced in 2019, Digit integrates well with other automated systems and has made significant progress at a facility operated for SPANX. It perceives its surroundings with advanced LIDAR and stereo cameras. It navigates autonomously, effectively avoiding obstacles.
Digit robots will work alongside human workers in the new factory.
In a new interview with Forbes, Agility CEO Peggy Johnson said the robotics company is focused on demonstrating Digit’s practical value.
The humanoids are designed specifically to work safely alongside people and can help with tasks like moving and loading boxes. As the robots work, they collect data to help improve their performance. They identify where the robot makes mistakes and use that info to refine their algorithms.
Jonathan Hurst, co-founder and chief robotic officer of Agility, told the Salem Reporter his company aims to enable people to be more human than human. He emphasized Digit isn’t intended to replace humans but take on dull, dirty, dangerous, repetitive tasks companies struggle to hire for.
Salem is about 47 miles north of Portland. Hurst told the newspaper the city of 180,000 was chosen for its central location and access to skilled workers.
In the Forbes interview, CEO Johnson said Agility is focused on developing the next generation of their products, likely including enhancements so Digit meets broader market needs. She said she wants to create an app store for its robots so companies can easily add new programs and change what the robots can do to fit different jobs.
Digit is one of at least three humanoid robots major logistics provider GXO has in use.
Agility is moving toward mass production as a growing array of companies globally race to dominate the market. Agility is up against the likes of:
- Figure 02, which Figure AI calls the world’s most advanced and first commercially viable autonomous humanoid robot. Figure’s much-hyped robot recently completed testing at a BMW plant, and the luxury automaker is exploring future use.
- Unitree’s H1, a Chinese AI robot that can do backflips, is touted as the fastest humanoid robot on two feet. The H1 is available for purchase, with prices ranging from 90 to over 150 thousand dollars and is already used in universities for robotics research. At UC San Diego, for example, researchers taught the robot to dance. Unitree recently introduced the mass production ready version of its G1, a downsized version of the H1 priced at $16K.
- Phoenix, from Sanctuary AI, which the startup says will bring artificial general intelligence into physical reality.
- Tesla’s Optimus, which Elon Musk says could boost the EV automaker’s market value into the trillions, is also in the spotlight. A small number of Tesla Bots are being tested at Gigafactory, with plans to produce a limited number in 2025 for internal use and increase production in 2026.
- And of course Boston Dynamics’ new electric Atlas.
The list grows daily.
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