US humanoid robot folds laundry with human-like precision for first time

Footage released Tuesday by Figure shows the Helix-powered robot picking up towels, smoothing them, folding them, and stacking them neatly in a basket.

Helix, the company’s AI control system, enables rapid, continuous movements of the robot’s wrists, torso, head, and individual fingers, allowing for more sophisticated handling, according to tech site Interesting Engineering.

Figure said that while folding laundry may be simple for humans, it is one of the most difficult tasks for humanoid robots due to the need for precise coordination to handle soft, constantly changing materials. This demonstration marks the first time a humanoid robot with multi-fingered hands has folded laundry fully autonomously.

Helix is the same system the firm uses for warehouse tasks, applied without changes to the core technology, with only a new training dataset added. This versatility allows the robot to switch from handling boxes in a factory to folding towels at home.

The California-based company said it expects the system to become faster, more skilled, and able to perform a broader range of tasks as it collects more real-world data.

It added that Helix also addresses long-standing challenges in robotics, such as balancing speed with adaptability, scaling to complex actions, and maintaining a simple design using standard models.

Another laundry-folding robot has also drawn attention online recently. Lume, developed by Stanford researcher Aaron Tan, gained millions of views in less than two days after a video showed it disguised as a pair of tall bedside lamps bending down and using robotic fingers to fold blankets, the San Francisco Standard reported.

Tan later clarified that the footage was created using CGI, but said a physical prototype exists, with plans to sell it for under US$2,000 and begin shipping in 2026.