by The company Faraday Future, which aims to follow Tesla’s path, presented three new robot models at the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) exhibition in Las Vegas. This presentation takes place against the backdrop of the company’s own automotive products still remaining largely inaccessible to the general consumer.
Three New Robot Models
Flagship Model FF Futurist
The pinnacle of the lineup is the FF Futurist series, with a starting price of $34,990. This robot is positioned as a “full-size professional humanoid.” The company claims it is set to become the first humanoid robot in the United States to achieve mass production and delivery.
Faraday reported that the Futurist is equipped with 28 high-performance motors, and its battery life is three hours. This is not a lot, but the robot has a design with a quickly replaceable battery, allowing for rapid replacement and continuation of work.
The robot can serve as a multilingual concierge in hotels and museums, as well as a sales advisor in car dealerships and retail stores.
The robot’s perception system combines several high-resolution cameras, a fisheye camera, an RGB-D camera, 3D LiDAR, and tactile sensors. The model also supports natural interaction in 50 languages.
The company also sees the Futurist in the role of an assistant for research and teaching, as well as an intelligent brand ambassador. In the future, if everything goes according to plan, the robot could become a home helper or an industrial worker in factories.
Mid-Range Model FF Master
The middle position in the lineup is occupied by the FF Master priced at $19,990, described as an “athletic EAI humanoid.” Created to be cost-effective, this robot, according to the company, is a “master of all intelligent actions who truly understands you.”
Faraday stated that the robot uses the Orin NX platform and has a computing power of up to 157 TOPS. The model has a sensor suite and is upgradable. The company claims the robot can adapt and learn new skills, and can be a practical assistant for research, training, or a learning companion for children.
Budget Robot FX Aegis
The most affordable model is the FX Aegis priced at $2,499. In appearance, it resembles a more budget-friendly version of Boston Dynamics’ Spot robot. It is designed for security and companionship and is positioned as a “dedicated, practical guardian.”
The robot has four legs, can climb slopes up to 40 degrees, and overcome obstacles up to 330 mm high. It is equipped with WiFi and 5G for remote monitoring and control. The company also plans to release various accessories for it, from robotic arms to fire extinguishers.
Faraday Future announced that robot deliveries are scheduled for the end of February, and the company has already received over 1,200 non-binding deposits for them.
This step by the company into the world of robotics raises many questions, given its complex history with releasing electric vehicles. The transition to manufacturing complex robots may be an attempt to find a new source of income and attract investor attention while the automotive business remains problematic. The success of this initiative will depend not only on the technical specifications of the robots but also on Faraday Future’s ability to organize their stable mass production and real market implementation, which has always been its weak point.
