Microduck Is a Robot Built to Fall Down—and Learn New Tricks
The open-source robot can be retrained with reinforcement learning and ships before Christmas 2026, Hugging Face said.
- On Thursday, Hugging Face and Pollen Robotics unveiled the Microduck, a 9.8-inch tall one-eyed bipedal robot available for preorder at $399. The company plans to begin shipping before Christmas 2026.
- Hugging Face acquired French startup Pollen Robotics in April 2025 to build affordable, open-source AI hardware. The strategy enables developers to train behaviors in simulation and deploy them directly on the robot.
- Equipped with 15 motors and a Rockchip RK3566 processor, the Microduck offers approximately 1 hour of battery life. The SDK is available on GitHub, allowing developers to retrain the bot with new behaviors.
- CEO Clem Delangue told TechCrunch that open-source models are superior to "a black box system" controlled by a few organizations. He emphasized privacy advantages for users over proprietary alternatives.
- This launch occurs alongside reports that Nvidia is acquiring Hugging Face at a $13 billion valuation. Nvidia has provided the startup's infrastructure since at least 2023, positioning the company centrally in open-source AI.
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32 Articles
Hugging Face says its roller-skating robot duck scored $2.6 million in orders in 24 hours
The duck, which uses cameras, LiDAR scanner, and 15 motors, is accepting preorders at $399.Hugging Face, Pollen RoboticsHugging Face appears to have gotten its ducks in a row.Cofounder Thomas Wolf said shoppers are flocking to buy the nearly 10-inch, programmable Microduck.It's the latest attempt by a tech company to develop a consumer-friendly robotics product.Apparently, a lot of people want a nearly 10-inch-tall robot duck.On Friday, Hugging …
Hugging Face has launched MicroDuck, an open-source duck robot priced at $399, to make AI technology easily accessible to everyone. Users can program new movements themselves and apply reinforcement learning, which is seen as a strategic move by the company to extend its software-centric open-source philosophy into the realm of physical AI.
This duck-shaped robot is almost cute enough to make you forget its AI
Credit: Hugging Face TL;DR Hugging Face has unveiled a $400 bipedal robot called Microduck. The duck-shaped robot features 15 motors, a camera, a depth sensor, and an articulated beak that can pick up objects. Microduck comes with learned behaviors and can be controlled with a gamepad, but developers can also teach it new skills through reinforcement learning, simulation, and open-source software. AI has earned an overwhelmingly negative percep…
Microduck is a robot built to fall down—and learn new tricks
Sorry, cats and dogs, there’s another goofy pet vying for your owner’s attention, and this one doesn’t have fur or stink up the apartment. In fact, this companion is not even alive. It’s a lampshade-sized, armless, bipedal robot named Microduck. And while other robot pets have come and gone, AI data science company Hugging Face says that their Microduck is capable of learning new tricks. “It’s a tiny $399 open-source robot you can teach new tri…
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