1X Technologies NEO
Cable-driven home humanoid — now open for preorder ($20k or $499/mo)
Overview
1X Technologies NEO is the consumer home humanoid from 1X (a Norwegian-founded, Palo Alto-headquartered company led by Bernt Børnich), built around one radical design principle: safety above all else. By replacing gears with cable-driven actuators, NEO eliminates the crushing risk inherent in gear-based systems, making it one of the few humanoids genuinely designed for home use alongside humans. At just ~30 kg it is among the lightest full-size humanoids, and its whole-body imitation-learning AI stack lets it learn tasks from demonstration. NEO opened for preorder in late 2025 at $20,000 outright or $499/month, with first US deliveries targeted for late 2026 — a serious attempt to put a humanoid in ordinary homes, though early autonomy still leans on teleoperation.
Score Breakdown
Available skills
Technical Specifications
Pros & Cons
Strengths
- Gear-free cable-driven actuators — safest humanoid design, no crushing risk
- Only 30 kg — by far the lightest full-size humanoid, ideal for home environments
- OpenAI-backed AI stack with state-of-the-art whole-body imitation learning
- Designed from day one for homes alongside humans, not industrial settings
- Dual form factor: NEO humanoid and EVE wheeled platform share the same AI stack
Weaknesses
- Walking speed 1.4 m/s — safety-first vs research bipeds; vendor 6.2 m/s max-run figure is unverified
- Preorder only — first US deliveries not until late 2026
- Early autonomy still leans on teleoperation for many tasks
- Very limited public documentation and SDK access
