ROBOTICS
This humanoid robot isn’t for you and that’s the point
Fauna Robotics has introduced Sprout, a humanoid robot developed over the past two years.
Standing around 3.5 feet tall, Sprout has a soft, padded exterior, a wide head, and expressive mechanical eyebrows.
According to co-founder and CEO Rob Cochran, its design is inspired by friendly science-fiction robots such as Baymax and Rosie Jetson, he told the Associated Press.
Sprout has articulated limbs and gripper hands, giving it the ability to move and interact in human environments.
While it could eventually be used for household or industrial tasks alongside robots like Tesla Optimus and Boston Dynamics Atlas, Fauna Robotics is not targeting consumers.
Instead, Sprout is being sold as a ready-to-use platform for researchers, developers, universities, and robotics teams that want to build applications without creating a humanoid from scratch.
The company says Sprout’s movement, perception, navigation, and expression work out of the box, allowing users to focus on experimentation rather than basic mobility.
It was also designed to be safe around people, with no sharp edges, no pinch points, and a lightweight, quiet build.
Here’s what you should know:
Sprout is a humanoid platform built for research, not consumers
Its value lies in reducing development time and cost
At $50,000, it targets labs, universities, and companies
Cute, but not domestic
While it cannot yet perform complex household tasks, the platform is designed to support future development.
Sprout is priced at $50,000, placing it out of reach for most individuals but cheaper than developing a humanoid internally.
Early customers reportedly include Disney and Boston Dynamics.
Although pricing for robots like Atlas is not public, Sprout is positioned as a lower-cost, lower-risk option for testing and research.
I WANT ONE NOW. - MV