Digital Event Horizon
Hugging Face Acquires Pollen Robotics to Revolutionize Open-Source Robotics and AI Development
Hugging Face acquires Pollen Robotics, a leading developer of open-source humanoid robots. The acquisition aims to further democratize access to robotics technology and make it more accessible to researchers, developers, and organizations worldwide. Pollen Robotics' flagship robot, Reachy 2, is a state-of-the-art platform that combines advanced hardware with user-friendly software. The acquisition positions Hugging Face as a leader in open-source robotics and AI development. The partnership is expected to lead to the development of new robotic platforms, AI models, and datasets.
In a groundbreaking move, Hugging Face has announced its acquisition of Pollen Robotics, a leading developer of open-source humanoid robots designed for advanced research and real-world applications. This acquisition marks a significant milestone in the rapidly evolving landscape of open-source robotics and AI development.
As the most widely used platform for AI builders, Hugging Face has established itself as a central hub for AI, hosting the most popular open-source models and datasets. With this acquisition, the company is poised to further democratize access to robotics technology, making it more accessible to researchers, developers, and organizations worldwide.
Pollen Robotics, founded in 2016, has been at the forefront of developing innovative and user-friendly robotic platforms for embodied AI applications. Their flagship humanoid robot, Reachy 2, is a state-of-the-art platform that combines advanced hardware with user-friendly software, enabling intuitive interactions and agile manipulation. With its open-source hardware and software at its core, Reachy 2 provides researchers, developers, unprecedented freedom to explore human-robot interactions, machine learning applications, and practical AI-driven tasks.
The acquisition of Pollen Robotics by Hugging Face is a strategic move that positions the company as a leader in the open-source robotics and AI development space. By integrating Reachy 2 and other robotic platforms into its ecosystem, Hugging Face is well-positioned to accelerate innovation in this critical area.
According to Thomas Wolf, co-founder and chief scientist at Hugging Face, "We believe robotics could be the next frontier unlocked by AI – and it should be open, affordable, and private. Our vision: a future where everyone in the community, from hobbyists to enterprises, can build or use robot assistants or games, starting from open solutions instead of closed, remote controlled, hardware."
Matthieu Lapeyre, Pollen co-founder, added, "From the start, we built Pollen Robotics with open source at its core, driven by our belief that robots will play a profound role in our lives – serving as the interface between AI and the physical world. Hugging Face is a natural home for us to grow, as we share a common goal: putting AI and robotics in the hands of everyone."
This acquisition comes on the heels of Hugging Face's notable additions to its ecosystem, including Gradio and XetHub. The company has raised over $395 million to date from leading investors, including Google, Amazon, Nvidia, Salesforce, Sequoia, Coatue, Lux Capital, and Addition.
The first robot being offered by Pollen Robotics is Reachy 2 – your friendly little lab partner for the AI era that is already in use in labs like Cornell or Carnegie Mellon. It's a state-of-the-art humanoid robot that is open-source & VR-compatible, built for research, education, and embodied AI experiments. You can already order one for $70,000 by emailing sales@pollen-robotics.com.
As Hugging Face continues to grow its ecosystem of open-source robots, researchers, developers, and organizations worldwide can expect a new era of innovation in the field of robotics and AI development. With Pollen Robotics' expertise in developing user-friendly robotic platforms for embodied AI applications, Hugging Face is well-positioned to further accelerate this evolution.
In 2025 alone, Clem predicted that "at least 100k personal robots will be pre-ordered," signaling massive growth in the space. This acquisition marks a significant step towards making robotics technology more accessible and affordable for everyone.
The partnership between Hugging Face and Pollen Robotics is expected to lead to the development of new robotic platforms, AI models, and datasets that will further democratize access to robotics and AI development. With this acquisition, Hugging Face is poised to become an even more important player in the rapidly evolving landscape of open-source robotics and AI development.
As researchers, developers, and organizations worldwide continue to explore the vast potential of robotics and AI, the acquisition of Pollen Robotics by Hugging Face is a significant milestone that will shape the future of this critical field. With its expertise in developing user-friendly robotic platforms for embodied AI applications, Hugging Face is well-positioned to lead the way in this exciting new era.
Related Information:
https://www.digitaleventhorizon.com/articles/Hugging-Face-Acquires-Pollen-Robotics-A-New-Era-for-Open-Source-Robotics-and-AI-Development-deh.shtml
https://huggingface.co/blog/hugging-face-pollen-robotics-acquisition
Published: Mon Apr 14 13:19:31 2025 by llama3.2 3B Q4_K_M
