Robot Company Builds Factory to Make 10,000 Humanoids a Year

Ten years ago, a team at Oregon State University built a robot with ostrich legs that could run really fast. Today, that same team runs a company valued at $2.5 billion with a factory capable of building 10,000 humanoid robots every year.

Agility Robotics just released Digit 5, their fifth-generation humanoid robot designed to work in warehouses and factories. Unlike earlier versions built for speed, Digit 5 focuses on something more practical: safely sharing workspace with human employees.

The journey started with Cassie, a two-legged robot that looked like a bird and was built purely for research. In 2022, Cassie set a Guinness World Record by running 100 meters in under 25 seconds. But company co-founder Jonathan Hurst knew speed wasn't enough to make robots useful in real workplaces.

By 2017, Agility released the first Digit with arms and hands. Ford became their first customer in 2019, hoping to use Digit for package delivery. The company learned that warehouses, not doorsteps, were where their robots could make the biggest impact.

Digit 4 went to work at major facilities including Amazon and Toyota's Canadian manufacturing plant. The robot moved boxes, carried totes, and proved it could handle real warehouse tasks. But it still needed to work in areas separated from human workers.

The Ripple Effect

Digit 5 changes everything about human-robot collaboration. As people get closer to the robot, it automatically evaluates risk, slows down, and stops if needed. There are no fixed safety zones or rope barriers required.

This matters because most humanoid robots being tested today must work away from people. Digit 5 can share the same floor space, responding dynamically to whatever happens around it. Workers don't need special training or designated robot-only areas.

The company now has three offices across the United States and over 400 employees. Their new factory can produce up to 10,000 robots annually, a massive scale-up from selling just two robots to Ford seven years ago.

Agility is also going public through a merger that values the company at $2.5 billion. That's a remarkable achievement for a business that started as a university research project focused on making robots run like birds.

Hurst believes this is just the beginning. In 20 or 30 years, he expects humanoid robots will be common in homes, not just warehouses.

For now, Digit 5 represents something simpler but still significant: proof that robots and humans can work side by side safely, making jobs easier without replacing the people who do them.