The $300 Open-Source Robot That Could Break the AI Hardware Monopoly
Humanoids just got their Raspberry Pi moment.
Let’s be honest: humanoid robots have been mostly out of reach for the average developer or tinkerer. They’re expensive, closed, and often cloaked in proprietary black-box design. But Hugging Face just smashed that narrative with the debut of HopeJR and Reachy Mini—two open-source humanoids priced at $3,000 and $300, respectively.
Why does this matter?
Because this isn’t just a quirky side project for a company known for natural language processing models. It’s a flag planted in the ground.
This is Hugging Face saying: “Robotics belongs to everyone.”
And it’s no coincidence that this move comes shortly after they acquired Pollen Robotics, the team behind the original Reachy. Now, they’re building on that lineage—but stripping out the barriers that have long locked people out of real-world robotics experimentation.
Meet the Robots
HopeJR: 66 degrees of freedom. HopeJR… a full-size, arm-waving, object-manipulating humanoid—currently demoed via remote control, with autonomous capabilities in the works—that costs less than your last MacBook Pro.
Check out this video of HopeJr on X.
Reachy Mini: A $300 desktop robot that can talk, listen, and tilt its head thanks to a clever retractable neck—perfect for judging your code from the corner of your desk. Ideal for classroom demos, AI prototypes, or your next weird art project.
Both are modular. Both are fully open source. Both are here to disrupt.
From Transformers to Transformers With Arms
The irony isn’t lost here: Hugging Face, the company synonymous with NLP transformers, is now shipping literal transformers. Only instead of text, they’re training embodiment. This move completes the loop: from thinking machines to moving machines. From ChatGPT-style models to Rosie-the-Robot-style helpers—with preorders open now and shipping expected by year’s end.
And if you squint, you can see the deeper implication—open robotics might just be the next open-source revolution.
A Developer’s Playground, Not a Corporate Fortress
Unlike Tesla’s Optimus or Unitree’s sleek G1, these bots are meant to be messed with. You can take them apart. You can reprogram their behaviors. You can even modify their guts. No NDAs. No black-box firmware. Just a GitHub repo, a screwdriver, and your own imagination.
Hugging Face isn’t just selling robots. They’re selling agency.
The Stakes: Democratized Robotics or Consolidated Control?
As AI continues to leap out of screens and into physical form, the battle lines are being drawn. Will our embodied future be shaped by a few deep-pocketed firms with closed architectures and inscrutable ethics? Or will it be a messy, glorious open-source renaissance powered by a swarm of curious minds tinkering in garages and labs?
Hugging Face is betting on the latter.
Bottom Line: This Is the Raspberry Pi Moment for Humanoids
This could be the moment we look back on and say, “That’s when it started.” The same way Raspberry Pi blew open computing education and experimentation, Reachy Mini might do the same for physical AI. And HopeJR? That’s your startup’s next team member—or your thesis project with legs.
Stay tuned. There is a waiting list, although I couldn’t find it. According to PC Mag: “The waiting list for the robots is already open, though you’ll need to reach out to the CEO personally on X as they haven’t added a form to their website at the time of writing.”
Connect with the CEO- @ClementDelangue- on X.
Additional Resources for Curious Humans:
Hugging Face’s Robotics Venture Timeline. Source: Hugging Face.
NotebookCheck. Affordable robotics: Hugging Face introduces $3,000 humanoid and $300 desktop robot. Marius Mueller. (June 3, 2025.)
eWeek. Two New Humanoid AI Robots Stand Out For Being Affordable and Open Source. Madeline Clark. (June 3, 2025.)
IndianExpress. Hugging Face unveils new low-cost, ‘open-source’ humanoid robots to take on Tesla. These humanoids are significantly cheaper than rival robots such as Unitree’s G1 and Elon Musk-owned Tesla’s Optimus Gen 2. (June 3, 2025.)
Forbes. The Strategy Behind Hugging Face’s Acquisition Of Pollen Robotics. Janakiram MSV. (June 2, 2025.)
hackster.io. Hugging Face Makes Its Move in Robotics. Hugging Face has acquired Pollen Robotics to bring open source, embodied AI to humanoid robots in an affordable and DIY-friendly way. Nick Bild.
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