Meet NEO, from the OpenAI-backed company 1X. It's the first humanoid you can actually pre-order. But as NEO steps out of the lab and onto homes, the reality is proving to be a lot more strange, fascinating, and deeply personal.
Neo is a humanoid robot butler ((Image credit: 1X)
If you want to learn more, keep reading…
It’s Built for Your Living Room, Not a Factory Floor
While competitors like Tesla's Optimus and Figure's humanoids are being designed for industrial automation, NEO is taking a completely different path. It is built exclusively for domestic environments.
Every detail reflects this home-first philosophy. The company describes it as "approachable and comfortable to be around.", operating at a whisper-quiet 22dB, making it more silent than a modern refrigerator.
It’s Intentionally Weaker Than You Think
In a world full of heavily geared, high-force mechanics of factory bots, NEO’s design makes a counter-intuitive choice: it's deliberately limited for safety. During a demo for The Wall Street Journal, NEO was asked to crush a walnut. It couldn’t. The surprising reason? Its finger strength is engineered to be about the same as a human's.
This isn't a bug; it's a core feature. The goal is gentle, delicate, and sensitive movement, making it safe to be around people, pets, and your fragile wine glasses.
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You're Not Just an Owner—You're a Trainer (and Someone Might Be Watching)
This is the detail that stops everyone in their tracks: NEO doesn’t arrive fully autonomous. When it encounters a task it hasn't learned yet, owners can schedule a session in "Expert Mode." When it gets stuck, a human operator from 1X can log in, see through its eyes, and control its body using a VR headset.
These human-guided sessions are the primary source of training data for NEO's AI. Early adopters aren't just buying a product; they are active participants in its development.
1X Neo close up ((Image credit: 1X)
Your Robot Housekeeper Wears a Washable Sweater
In a quirky yet practical design choice, NEO comes with its own wardrobe. Each robot is outfitted with a machine-washable knit suit, a hood, and customizable shoes available in colors like Tan, Gray, and Dark Brown.
It acts as a soft "safety skin," making any accidental bumps or interactions safer and less jarring. The aesthetic design is meant to make the robot feel less intimidating and help it blend into your home decor.
Get Ready for "Robotic Slop"
Forget the hyper-efficient androids of Hollywood lore. NEO's early performance is slow, deliberate, and sometimes clumsy. It takes NEO over a minute to fetch a water bottle from a fridge 10 feet away. Loading just three items into a dishwasher takes five minutes. This is the reality of a first-generation consumer robot. The company embraces this with a concept called "robotic slop."
TL;DR
A shirt might not be folded with military crispness, but it’s still folded. The idea is that a task done imperfectly is still incredibly useful. And that's a necessary first step for a technology in its infancy.
