Summary: 1x Technologies recently launched Neo, a home robot wrapped in fabric designed to assist with household chores. However, Neo is currently fully teleoperated by human operators, and its performance on tasks is far from perfect. Priced at $20,000 or $500 per month, Neo invites users to accept its current limitations—what the CEO calls “robotics slop”—while providing valuable data to improve future versions. This approach raises questions about privacy, effectiveness, and what consumers should expect from emerging home robotics.
Introducing Neo: The Home Robot Launch
On Tuesday evening, 1x Technologies, a relatively unknown company, released a nearly 10-minute video unveiling Neo, “the home robot.” The video featured nostalgic Super 8-style footage, portraying Neo—a fabric-covered robot—as a charming new member of the family. The launch video quickly gained attention, amassing nearly 30 million views according to X’s metrics, though those numbers can be unreliable.
The Big Reveal: Neo Is Human-Controlled
However, the excitement was tempered by a revealing hands-on review from the Wall Street Journal. It turns out Neo isn’t an autonomous humanoid robot as many might have expected. Instead, it is fully teleoperated by a human using a virtual reality headset, controlling Neo remotely through its camera eyes. For a hefty price of $20,000 upfront or $500 monthly, customers essentially invite a remote operator into their homes to perform chores.
Performance Woes: When Robots Struggle at Home Tasks
The review highlighted Neo’s struggles with basic household tasks. The robot nearly toppled over while closing a dishwasher, took two minutes to fold a single shirt, and had difficulty opening a refrigerator door. If Neo were performing these tasks autonomously, it might still be considered a technical feat despite its shortcomings. But its poor performance combined with the need for constant human operation makes it less impressive.
Privacy Concerns: Who’s Really in Your Home?
One major concern is the identity and presence of the remote operators, known as “1X Experts.” According to 1x Technologies, these operators are employees physically located in the USA. Users can restrict certain areas from being viewed and blur faces, but all video footage is sent back to the company for training purposes. CEO Bernt Børnich openly stated that purchasing Neo means agreeing to this data-sharing arrangement, as it’s essential for improving the product.
The CEO’s Take: Embracing ‘Robotics Slop’
Børnich describes Neo’s current limitations as “robotics slop,” comparing it to early AI-generated images and videos that contain obvious flaws. He believes consumers will have to accept “good enough” performance from robots until the technology matures. This candid admission is unusual in the tech world, where companies typically overpromise and underdeliver without openly acknowledging shortcomings.
What Neo Means for the Future of Home Robotics
Neo represents a new approach to home robotics—not because it is a fully autonomous helper, but because it asks customers to pay for an imperfect product and participate in its development through data sharing. Whether users are comfortable inviting remote operators into their homes and accepting the robot’s current limitations remains to be seen. Neo’s launch sparks important conversations about privacy, performance, and the realistic expectations for the future of personal robots.