Hugging Face officially launched a 25-centimeter-tall open-source duck robot priced at $399 on August 27, 2026, Microduck, with shipping planned before Christmas. This product marks the further popularization and democratization of physical artificial intelligence and world models. Microduck is capable of waddling walking, carrying up to 800 grams, self-recovery after falling, squatting, and ice skating.

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In terms of hardware configuration, the robot integrates a camera, a laser radar sensor, and two inertial measurement units (IMUs); on the software side, its behavior supports training in a simulation environment using reinforcement learning and direct deployment. The related SDK, simulation environment, and complete training stack are all open source on GitHub.

This move continues Hugging Face's strategic layout in the open-source hardware field. After acquiring French startup Pollen Robotics in April 2025, the company previously released Reachy Mini, driven by a Raspberry Pi (priced at $499), and Reachy Mini Lite, driven by a PC/Mac (priced at $399).

Regarding privacy concerns raised by hardware devices with cameras, Hugging Face emphasized that open-source models offer higher auditability and control compared to black-box systems, but also pointed out that users installing third-party applications may still face risks of sensitive data leakage. Notably, this new product release coincides with reports that Hugging Face is about to be acquired by NVIDIA at a valuation of $13 billion. The two companies have long had deep cooperation in the open-source AI and infrastructure fields. This low-barrier hardware launch will accelerate the application and innovation of reinforcement learning and embodied intelligence in the developer community.