Norwegian-US startup 1X is planning to roll out humanoid robots for the home in 2026, as investors funnel record sums of money into companies developing the tech.
Humanoid robotics companies have raised $3.2bn globally in 2025, according to Dealroom, more than the previous six years combined. Big Tech companies including Tesla, Amazon and OpenAI are also all developing hardware or software for humanoid robotics.
On Tuesday, 1X launched pre-orders for its “Neo” robot, which the company says is the world’s first consumer-ready humanoid robot.
The machine will be able to do everyday household chores like laundry and tidying. It also has a built-in bluetooth speaker in its pelvis and chest which the company describes as a “mobile home entertainment system”.
Founded in Norway in 2014, 1X last announced a funding round in 2024, securing $100m from investors including EQT Ventures and Samsung. Previous backers include OpenAI and Target Global.
In September the Information said the startup was eyeing a raise of as much as $1bn at a $10bn valuation. 1X did not respond to request for comment on the report.
"Humanoids were long a thing of sci-fi [...] then they were a thing of research, but today — with the launch of Neo — humanoid robots become a product,” said CEO and founder Bernt Børnich in a statement.
“Neo closes the gap between our imaginations and the world we live in, to the point where we can actually ask a humanoid robot for help, and help is granted."
1X’s robot will be available for $20k to consumers in the US, which will see buyers get delivery in 2026. The startup will also launch a subscription model of $499 per month as part of a wider rollout further down the line.
The company’s humanoid robot will be available in markets outside the US from 2027, it said.
The rise of the humanoid
The timeline to market is quicker than some industry insiders expected. VCs and founders working on robotics have told Sifted in the past that making the tech required for messy, unstructured environments like the home safe to deploy is still years away.
Humanoid, a London-based company building humanoid robots for industry, wants to get its first product into the hands of business customers in early 2027. It doesn’t expect to sell into households until the 2030s.
“Investors understand that adoption for humanoids in a household environment will be I think in 10 or 20 years,” Alina Kolpakova, Humanoid’s chief strategy officer told Sifted in July.
That hasn’t stopped them ploughing huge sums of cash into predominantly US-based startups building humanoid robotics. Figure raised $1bn in September at a $39bn valuation, Apptronik picked up $403m in March and Agility Robotics raised $400m in March.
