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Artificial intelligence and robotics are two of the hottest disruptive technologies in the world today, but efforts to combine them are still in the early days.
Yesterday, AI hardware firm Figure made a big step towards integrating the two with Figure 02, a humanoid robot that is integrated with OpenAI‘s large language models (LLMs). This gives Figure 02 the capability of having speech-to-speech conversations with human beings.
Figure 02 has built-in speakers and microphones, six onboard RGB cameras, and its own vision language model with visual reasoning, which enables it to analyze its surroundings and navigate autonomously.
The robot also has 10 fingers with 16 degrees of freedom, similar to a human hand, and a carrying capacity of up to 25 kg.
Currently, Figure claims the robot features the “world’s most advanced AI hardware,” and at this point, it’s hard to disagree. The integration of OpenAI models is a big win for its natural language reasoning capabilities.
Bringing Humanoid Robots to Life
Intelligence humanoid robots have been a science fiction staple for decades. Autonomous robots have been depicted in everything from Weyland Yutani’s human-like androids in Alien to Iron Man’s Mark 2 Suit equipped with the Jarvis AI, to Transformers’ gargantuan Optimus Prime and the dreaded T100 Terminator.
However, despite these fictional representations, intelligent, physically autonomous robots have largely remained beyond the capabilities of AI and robotics researchers — up to now.
In recent years, innovations from Hanson Robotics, Boston Dynamics, Tesla, and Figure have shown that robotics and AI are steadily being blended together.
Now the release of Figure 02 has taken this merge to a new level by providing a robot with a greater ability to understand and interpret natural language and to replicate a range of human motions.
In theory, Figure 02 will be able to answer user’s questions in the same way ChatGPT with GPT-4o would be able to via voice. When we consider this alongside the robots ability to manipulate physical objects, it is clear that free moving robots will be a reality.
That being said, it’s important to note that no AI model or robot uses models capable of replicating human thought. They can process and respond to inputs in certain ways, but they can’t think and reason like a human mind or feel emotions.
Figure 02 Use Cases: The Robot In Action
So what is the purpose of a humanoid robot like the Figure 02? The biggest potential use case is in automating certain manufacturing processes. We can see this through Figure’s partnership with BMW.
Currently, BMW is experimenting with how humanoid robots could be used in its production environment.
“The developments in the field of robotics are very promising. With an early test operation, we are now determining possible applications for humanoid robots in production. We want to accompany this technology from development to industrialization,” Milan Nedeljkovic, member of the board of management for production at BMW AG said in the official press release.
BMW states that it has been using Figure 02 at the BMW iFACTORY as part of a trial run. The purpose of the trial was to see how general purpose robots could be used to benefit manufacturing and production.
As part of this trial, Figure 02 has been used to insert sheet metal parts into fixtures, which were then assembled as part of a chassis.
Beyond this not much more information is available, though BMW does claim that Figure 02 is capable of fully autonomous execution of “human-like: two-handed tasks, and it is able to place complex parts accurately to the millimeter.
The release notes that the robot’s mobility and dexterity make it ideally suited for use in areas with physically demanding, unsafe, or repetitive processes, i.e., areas where humans are less safe or engaged.
Although the pilot looks impressive, BMW notes that there are no Figure AI robots at its BMW Group Plant Spartanburg and no plans to bring them to the plant for the foreseeable future. So, while these robots can be used in manufacturing, the jury is still out for the time being.
Where Does Figure 02 Put Figure in the Robotics Market?
The AI and robotics market has the potential to grow rapidly. Markets and Markets expects it will grow from a value of $6.9 billion in 2021 to $35.3 billion by 2026 due to the advancement of AI and increased adoption across multiple industries.
Right now, the release of Figure 02 makes Figure arguably the robotics vendor to beat. This is particularly true when Figure has managed to integrate language models from the world’s largest AI startup, OpenAI. After all, since the launch of ChatGPT the hype behind OpenAI has been unprecedented.
Figure has also attracted significant investor interest, raising $675 million early this year and achieving a valuation of $2.6B in February 2024 with notable investors in the company, including OpenAI, Microsoft, Nvidia, Jeff Bezos, and Intel Capital.
Commercial agreements with OpenAI and BMW have also highlighted that the company has the connections not just to develop a humanoid robotics solution, but the approach necessary to get these solutions deployed and tested in real-world environments.
Out of all the robotics vendors, the best-equipped to compete is arguably the Tesla Optimus. It is also capable of emulating human movement and basic tasks (such as bagging and labeling items).
Just as Figure has the X factor of a connection with OpenAI, the Optimus has the X factor of the Musk connection and the level of hype his promotional machine brings to the table.
The Bottom Line
The development of robotics and AI tools is only just getting warmed up. This Figure 02 release highlights that humanoid robots are making their way out into the real world, and we should expect to see adoption increase significantly over the next decade.
