Universal mobile manipulators have a much greater chance of becoming the future of mass robotics than humanoid robots:
1. 99% of the needed use cases are flat floors and stairs, where wheels are much more efficient (energy, speed, stability, simplicity, cost, etc.).
2. They cost 10 times less – up to $4,000 (and $1,500 for the simplest prototype).
3. Non-humanoid arm designs also exist (in the third video) that have 10 times greater payload capacity and lower costs.
4. Humanoids fall very dangerously when something fails (e.g., battery, device, software, etc.).
Solving 99% of the needed use cases with dramatic improvements in performance and safety compared to humanoids should accelerate their adoption.
Do you like universal mobile manipulators as much as humanoids? Do you think humanoids will win the mass robotics race?