Headless Box-Stacking Robot Ready to Be Enslaved for $250,000

"If robots are going to be effective and useful to us they're going to have to work on our terms in our space."

Digit Worker

Robot manufacturer Agility has built a human-like robot called Digit that can load boxes onto a truck — and the company is selling it for a cool $250,000. The company announced a $20 million round of investment and is ready to go into "full commercial production."

The robot's overall shape is familiar: two legs, two arms. But the lack of a head and its backwards bending knees give the illusion away pretty quickly.

Digit is designed from the ground up to complete laborious tasks, including loading and unloading cargo or inspecting hazardous workplaces. But unlike a human worker, the robot can be packed into a rolling suitcase for easy delivery.

Smooth Transition

"If robots are going to be effective and useful to us they're going to have to work on our terms in our space," Agility CEO Jonathan Hurst argued in a video. In other words, getting the most out of the robot won't require any alterations to the work environment since it can already walk around like a human.

 

Agility recently struck a deal with Ford to build robots that can load and unload boxes from self-driving vehicles.

The news comes after Boston Dynamics put its dog-like robot called SpotMini on sale last year for around $75,000.

READ MORE: 'Digit' robot for sale and ready to perform manual labor [Tech Xplore]

More on robots: Ultra-Realistic Remote Controlled Dolphin Looks Like the Real Thing