UK-based robotics and AI company Humanoid has unveiled HMND 01 Alpha, the country’s first humanoid robot built specifically for industrial applications. Developed in just seven months, Alpha is the fastest-built humanoid robot to date and represents a major step toward large-scale automation in sectors struggling with labour shortages and productivity gaps.

In its first year, Humanoid has already completed two commercial Proofs of Concept (POCs), making HMND 01 Alpha the only industrial humanoid in the UK on track for commercial deployment within the next 12 months.

Industries across the UK, Europe, and the U.S. are facing a severe shortage of workers. The UK alone has over 58,000 manufacturing vacancies, and in the U.S., unfilled industrial jobs are expected to hit 2.1 million by 2030. Humanoid aims to tackle these challenges with Alpha, initially targeting tasks in warehouses, logistics, and retail environments — such as picking, sorting, machine feeding, kitting, and fulfilment support.

“Robots shouldn’t replace people, they should support them,” said Artem Sokolov, Founder of Humanoid. “After scaling my family’s manufacturing business, I saw firsthand the toll repetitive work took on employees, including my own grandparents. HMND 01 is built to fill the labour gaps, letting people to focus on more meaningful work. We are targeting a $38B industrial TAM, projected to reach $1T by 2050, with a clear path to market leadership in Europe. Globally, robot density averages 162 per 10,000 workers, and each additional robot can boost overall productivity by up to 7%, which means more output, fewer errors, and less strain on the team. That’s why we see HMND 01 not just as a machine, but as a step toward a more sustainable and human‑centred future of work.”

Unlike traditional automation, Alpha is designed to operate safely alongside human workers in existing facilities — eliminating the need for costly infrastructure upgrades while improving throughput, reducing errors, and enhancing working conditions.

Standing at 220 cm tall, Alpha is a wheeled humanoid robot capable of speeds up to 7.2 km/h and handling payloads of up to 15 kg with its dual-arm system. It can reach from the ground to two metres high and access shelves up to 60 cm deep. Alpha is equipped with 29 active degrees of freedom, advanced AI reasoning, and modular end-effectors — including a five-fingered hand and parallel gripper for versatility across tasks.

The robot also boasts 360-degree RGB vision and depth sensors, enabling full situational awareness in dynamic work environments.

Humanoid’s unique approach combines 360° simulation training with real-world data flywheels, delivering development speeds twice as fast and at half the cost of conventional robotics programs. The company is backed by $50 million in founder-led capital and a team of 175 engineers from top tech firms like Apple, Tesla, Google, Boston Dynamics, and Nvidia.

HMND 01 Alpha will be deployed in test environments across industrial sites to identify ready-to-scale functions and gather insights for the development of HMND 02 Beta, scheduled for release in Q3 2026.

Operating under a Robots-as-a-Service (RaaS) model, Humanoid aims to offer rapid ROI for enterprise customers, with up to 50% annual labour cost savings — all while showcasing the transformative potential of intelligent humanoid robots in the future of work.