Unitree G1

Unitree G1 is a compact humanoid from Hangzhou-based Unitree Robotics, unveiled in May 2024. It stands about 1.3 m tall, weighs about 35 kg and starts at $13,500, which has made it one of the cheapest and most widely sold humanoids. It is used mainly for research, education, demos and entertainment.

History and launch

Unitree revealed the G1 in May 2024 at the ICRA robotics conference in Yokohama. The base model was announced at $16,000; heise described it as a smaller, more affordable counterpart to the full-size H1, then priced from $90,000. Unitree now lists the G1 from $13,500.

The G1 quickly became known through videos of it running, getting up after falls, doing flips, boxing in exhibition bouts and dancing, and it is one of the most common machines at Chinese humanoid competitions and showcases.

Hardware

Unitree's spec table gives the standard G1 a height of 1320 mm, a weight of about 35 kg with battery and 23 degrees of freedom: 6 per leg, 5 per arm and 1 at the waist. The G1 EDU ranges from 23 to 43 DoF, with optional extra waist and wrist joints and the three-finger Dex3-1 hand (7 DoF, tactile sensors optional).

The robot folds to 690 x 450 x 300 mm. Its joints use low-inertia inner-rotor PMSM motors with crossed roller bearings; peak knee torque is 90 Nm on the standard model and 120 Nm on EDU. Arm payload is about 2 kg (about 3 kg on EDU), and Unitree notes it varies a lot with arm pose.

Perception comes from a depth camera and a 3D LiDAR, with a four-microphone array and a speaker for voice. A quick-release 9000 mAh battery lasts about two hours. The EDU can take a more powerful computer such as NVIDIA Jetson Orin.

Software and AI

Unitree says the G1's motion is trained with imitation and reinforcement learning, and the software is updated over the air. The EDU version allows custom development, which is why universities and labs tend to buy it. Unitree publishes an SDK and open-source material, and the G1 has become one of the most common platforms in humanoid control research.

Use cases and deployments

Buyers are mostly universities, research labs, robot-AI companies and event and showcase organisers. In its stock-exchange filings Unitree said it shipped more than 5,500 humanoids in 2025, which it described as the most in the world; the G1 accounts for a large share. With its small payload it is not designed for heavy physical work.

Manufacturer

Unitree Robotics was founded in 2016 in Hangzhou. It became known for low-cost quadrupeds (the Go series, B2) and has built humanoids since 2023, including H1, G1, R1 and H2. Revenue grew from 159 million yuan in 2023 to almost 1.7 billion yuan in 2025. In August 2026 the company listed on Shanghai's STAR Market, selling about 40.45 million shares at 150.8 yuan each.

Price and availability

Unitree lists the standard G1 from $13,500 excluding tax and shipping. The EDU costs more and is quoted by sales depending on configuration. The warranty is 8 months for the standard model and 18 months for EDU.

Timeline

• 2024-05 G1 unveiled at ICRA, priced from $16,000.
• 2025 Unitree ships more than 5,500 humanoids in the year.
• 2026-08 Unitree lists on Shanghai's STAR Market.

Sources

1. Unitree G1 product page and specifications, Unitree Robotics (2026-10)
2. Humanoid robot Unitree G1 costs 16,000 dollars, heise online (2024-05)
3. Chinese robot maker Unitree to debut on Shanghai market Wednesday, Xinhua via eHangzhou (2026-08-18)

Updated: 2026-10-10

Compared with the catalogue

• At 132 cm the Unitree G1 is taller than 7% of the humanoids in the catalogue (median: 170 cm).
• It has 23 degrees of freedom against a catalogue median of 28; more degrees of freedom usually means finer arm and hand movement.
• Its weight of 35 kg (catalogue median: 65 kg) matters for transport and for working around people.
• It is one of 8 Unitree models in the catalogue and one of 128 humanoids from China.

Capabilities

Video