UK start-up says its modular humanoid robots will cut costs
25 February 2025 
A UK-based AI and robotics startup is aiming to develop the world’s leading, commercially scalable, and safe humanoid robots. London-based Humanoid (also known as SKL Robotics), founded in 2024 by serial entrepreneur Artem Sokolov, plans to test prototypes for two platforms – wheeled and bipedal – later this year.
“We’re also in ongoing discussions with leading retail companies for potential pilot projects,” Sokolov notes.
The company’s 175cm-tall HMND 01 humanoid weighs 70kg and has 41 degrees of freedom. It has a walking speed of 1.5 m/s (5.4 km/h), a payload capacity of up to 15kg, and an average runtime of four hours. The company says it can achieve human-level or faster manipulation speeds for complex tasks, and can navigate confined spaces with “exceptional” accuracy.
The robot’s hardware and software are modular. Customers will be able to combine different upper-body, lower-body and end-effector configurations to suit their application, and cut costs by eliminating non-essential hardware and software. There will be choice of interchangeable “garments” to protect both the robot and its environment. These garments will also allow the robot to take on different identities tailored to the application.
The robots will incorporate high-torque, high-speed actuators, and use AI for environment perception and object manipulation. The company reports it is also developing model- and learning-based locomotion and whole-body control technologies.
Humanoid says that its general-purpose robots will offer a low TCO (total cost of ownership) and be designed for mass commercialisation. They will be suitable for a variety of applications, including industrial roles such as goods handling, picking and packing, kitting and parts-handling. They could be used in retail and manufacturing sites, logistics and fulfilment centres, and warehouses.
Humanoid is entering an increasingly competitive, but potentially lucrative, market. ABI Research predicts that the global market for humanoid robots will achieve a CAGR of 95% between 2022 and 2030, when it will be worth $6.5bn. Annual shipments could reach 1,000 robots this year and 182,000 by 2030. There are at least a dozen developers working on humanoid robots around the world, including Tesla, Figure AI, Boston Dynamics and several Chinese companies. The US developer, Apptronik, recently raised $350m from investors that include Google, and Apple is reported to be working on humanoid technologies.
