TL;DR
- NEO is a 5’6″, fabric-clad humanoid designed for household help (tidying, fetching items, opening doors) with foundational autonomy plus “Expert Mode” (remote human guidance) for tasks it hasn’t learned yet.
- Price & availability: Early-access ownership $20,000 or $499/mo subscription; $200 fully refundable deposit; U.S. deliveries begin in 2026.
- Hardware highlights: soft, pinch-proof design; 66 lb body; lifts 154 lb; 842 Wh battery (~4 h runtime); 22 dB operation; NVIDIA Jetson Thor compute; Wi-Fi/Bluetooth/5G.
- Reality check: impressive design and safety, but not fully autonomous yet—remote operators may step in (with consent) to complete harder chores, raising privacy and data-access questions.
- Bottom line: early adopters and accessibility use cases may benefit; mainstream buyers should wait for independent reviews of shipped units and clearer policies on teleoperation and data.
What is NEO?
NEO is a consumer-oriented humanoid from 1X Technologies built to automate everyday chores and offer conversational assistance. It combines a soft, home-safe body with vision, language, audio, and memory systems to perceive your space, understand instructions, and perform simple tasks. 1X positions NEO as “the world’s first consumer-ready humanoid home robot,” with pre-orders now open.
What NEO can do (now and near-term)
- Basic chores: open doors, fetch items, put things away, turn lights off/on, simple tidying, and laundry-adjacent tasks (e.g., moving items). Early owners get basic autonomy out of the box.
- Learn new tasks via “Expert Mode”: when NEO encounters something unfamiliar, a vetted 1X Expert can remotely guide it at scheduled times—doing the job while teaching NEO so it can repeat it later.
- Talk and coordinate: voice interface, mobile app for scheduling and monitoring, and a built-in LLM for conversational help.
Independent hands-on early looks underscore that humans are still in the loop for more complex tasks today, and that the road to full autonomy remains work-in-progress.
Pricing, Pre-Orders, and Availability
- Ownership (Early Access): $20,000 with 3-year warranty, premium support, priority delivery.
- Subscription (Standard): $499/month with a starter productivity package.
- Deposit: $200, fully refundable.
- Timeline: U.S. deliveries start in 2026; you can reserve today.
Coverage from major tech outlets confirms pricing and the subscription option.
How NEO Works: Autonomy + “Expert Mode”
NEO ships with foundational autonomy to handle routine tasks. When it hits a task it doesn’t know, Expert Mode lets a trained 1X operator guide NEO remotely (at user-approved times), completing the task and teaching NEO the steps for next time. In other words, the robot’s abilities expand over time through a mix of onboard learning (“Redwood AI”) and human-in-the-loop instruction.
This approach is consistent with current reporting that NEO’s fully independent capability is limited today, with human teleoperation bridging the gap to future autonomy—useful, but also the source of most privacy and security questions prospective buyers ask.
Specs at a Glance (what stands out)
- Size & payload: 5’6″ height; 66 lb weight; 154 lb lift, 55 lb carry, 18 lb arm payload.
- Mobility: walking ~1.4 m/s; soft, tendon-driven actuation with high backdrivability for safe contact.
- Runtime & noise: 842 Wh battery, ~4 hours runtime; 22 dB (quieter than a modern refrigerator).
- Ruggedness: IP68 hands (submersible), IP44 body (splash-proof), pinch-proof joints.
- Compute & I/O: 1X NEO Cortex (NVIDIA Jetson Thor) up to 2070 FP4 TFLOPS; dual 8.85 MP 90 Hz stereo fisheye cameras; 4 beamforming mics; Wi-Fi/Bluetooth/5G.
Safety and Design for the Home
NEO’s soft, fabric-clad body, deformable 3D lattice shell, and tendon-driven joints aim to be “gentle” and pinch-proof in close contact with people and furniture. Its “Emotive Ear Rings” convey system state (battery, attention), and the suit/shoes are machine-washable. The robot can self-charge by plugging itself in.
AI Stack, Learning & the Road to Full Autonomy
1X says NEO uses Redwood AI, a generalist vision-language model the company is building to learn household skills and repeat them reliably. Beyond 1X’s own stack, the company has also shown related NEO Gamma research using NVIDIA GR00T N1 to train post-policies for autonomous tidying—an indicator of how the broader humanoid ecosystem is progressing.
Translation for buyers: NEO will likely get better over time via software, new skills, and data-driven improvements—but you should expect a hybrid experience (autonomous + Expert Mode) in the early years.
What NEO Can (and Cannot) Do Right Now
Can today / near-term:
- Open doors, fetch and carry items, toggle switches, tidy surfaces, basic laundry-adjacent workflows, and “get the door.”
- Respond to voice, remember context in your home, and act on scheduled chore lists via the app.
Not ready for (yet):
- Fully independent execution of any arbitrary household task; NEO still relies on remote assistance for novel/complex chores.
- The company does not claim readiness for handling hazardous tools or environments. (Expect staged capability rollouts.)
Independent journalists who tried early demos reached similar conclusions: the promise is real, but today’s utility depends on human-in-the-loop operations for harder tasks.
Privacy, Security & “A Human in Your House—Virtually”
Because Expert Mode involves a vetted human teleoperator guiding NEO via its cameras, buyers should scrutinize consent flows, data retention, encryption, and logging. 1X emphasizes scheduled access and user control; still, it’s wise to assess placement of the robot, who’s home during sessions, and what gets recorded before opting in.
Who Is NEO For?
- Early adopters & robotics enthusiasts who want to live at the frontier of embodied AI and can tolerate rough edges.
- Households seeking assistance (e.g., mobility or dexterity challenges) where supervised, scheduled help could be genuinely useful.
- Developers and researchers exploring generalist robotics in real homes (1X explicitly frames NEO Early Access as a learning phase).
If your expectation is a fully autonomous “do-anything” helper on day one, wait for production-unit reviews and feature updates.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Soft, safe, quiet design made for homes (22 dB, pinch-proof joints, fabric suit).
- Strong specs (carry/lift), self-charging, modern connectivity, mobile + voice control.
- Learning model with human-in-the-loop to expand capabilities over time.
Cons
- Not fully autonomous today; Expert Mode is central for complex tasks.
- Privacy trade-offs with remote teleoperation and in-home cameras.
- High cost of entry; real-world utility vs. price will depend on how fast autonomy improves.
Alternatives & Context
Most “home robots” today are specialized appliances (vacuums, mops) or tablet-on-wheels assistants—not full humanoids. NEO is one of the first to blend human-scale manipulation with home safety and consumer packaging; industry coverage widely notes the ambition and the current reliance on teleoperation as a bridge to autonomy.
Buying Advice
- Clarify your must-have tasks (e.g., retrieval, tidying, door handling). Match them to what NEO can do today and where Expert Mode will be needed.
- Review the teleoperation policies (scheduling, consent, video access, storage). Place the robot in rooms you’re comfortable streaming.
- Budget realistically: factor subscription vs. ownership, warranty, and the time you’ll spend supervising early skills.
- Wait for production reviews if you want proven out-of-box autonomy. Early press tests highlight the human-in-the-loop reality.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is NEO fully autonomous?
Not yet. It ships with foundational autonomy and uses Expert Mode (remote, scheduled human guidance) for tasks it hasn’t learned. Over time, 1X says software updates and in-home learning will expand autonomy.
How much does NEO cost?
Early access $20,000 (ownership) or $499/month (subscription). Reserve with a $200 refundable deposit. U.S. deliveries start 2026.
What are the headline specs?
66 lb body; lifts 154 lb; carries 55 lb; 842 Wh battery (~4 h); 22 dB operation; Jetson Thor compute; dual 8.85 MP stereo cameras; Wi-Fi/Bluetooth/5G.
What can it do at home?
Open doors, fetch items, turn lights on/off, tidy, organize, and complete routine chores—expanding with experience (and Expert Mode where needed).
Editor’s Verdict
NEO is a milestone: a consumer-packaged humanoid that’s genuinely designed for the home, not a lab. The hardware and safety story are excellent; the learning-plus-teleoperation recipe is pragmatic. But for most households, the value case depends on how fast the autonomy curve climbs and how comfortable you are with scheduled remote guidance in your living room. If you’re an early adopter—or you have a clear assistance need that aligns with NEO’s current skills—it’s worth a reservation. Otherwise, keep it on your watchlist and reevaluate when production reviews land.
