Hugging Face launches $399 open-source duck robot Microduck
Hugging Face unveiled Microduck, a 25-centimeter-tall duck robot priced at $399, capable of waddling, picking up objects, and roller skating. It uses a camera, lidar, and IMUs for perception, and its behaviors can be trained via reinforcement learning. The SDK and training stack are available on GitHub.
The Microduck follows Hugging Face's April 2025 acquisition of Pollen Robotics, which already produced the Reachy Mini desktop robot line. The new device's perception stack combines a camera, lidar, and dual IMUs, with behaviors trained in simulation before deployment. Its GitHub release includes the SDK, simulation environment, and full reinforcement learning stack.
The launch arrives amid reported acquisition talks with Nvidia at a $13 billion valuation, a partnership dating to at least 2023. Hugging Face has also recently dealt with a cybersecurity incident stemming from OpenAI's sandbox breach during safety testing.
The Microduck could lower the barrier to personal robotics experimentation, making physical AI accessible to hobbyists and educators rather than only well-funded labs. Its open-source nature may give users auditability over data flows, though third-party apps could still access cameras and microphones, raising privacy questions. As affordable robots enter homes, society may need to weigh the benefits of democratized AI against new surveillance and security risks.