Nvidia and Unitree Unveil H2 Plus Humanoid Robot Blueprint
The 6-foot, 150-pound H2 Plus combines Unitree’s hardware with Nvidia’s Thor T5000 chip, aiming to lower costs for AI training while raising questions about geopolitical risk.
Nvidia and Chinese robotics startup Unitree have announced a blueprint for the H2 Plus humanoid robot, a collaboration that merges Unitree’s hardware with Nvidia’s Thor T5000 chip and software suite. The 6-foot, 150-pound robot is designed to facilitate AI training for researchers, including US academic labs, by providing accessible tools to build and programme advanced humanoids. The system integrates Unitree’s motors, actuators, and sensors with Nvidia’s silicon, which runs powerful AI models for environmental sensing and movement control.
The H2 Plus features a dexterous hand manufactured by Singaporean company Sharpa, capable of complex tasks such as card tricks and peeling fruit. Spencer Huang, Nvidia’s director of product for robotics and son of CEO Jensen Huang, stated that Unitree is the first partner in a broader strategy to provide Nvidia’s silicon to multiple humanoid companies. He indicated that the technology could potentially enhance the capabilities of other Chinese robots, including conventional industrial arms.
The partnership underscores the complex interdependence between US artificial intelligence silicon and Chinese manufacturing supply chains. Scott Singer, a fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, noted that while the US holds the world’s best AI chips, China’s supply chain provides a hardware edge. He described the collaboration as a fascinating development where both sides utilise key parts of the supply chain, despite the sector being a critical arena for US-China technological competition.
Security concerns remain a focal point of the debate. Security researchers have previously claimed that Unitree robots are capable of capturing and transmitting data, raising national security issues. In response, the H2 Plus blueprint includes specific security features designed to address concerns regarding data transmission and model safety. The US government bars Nvidia from selling its most capable chips to China, but restrictions were loosened late last year to permit the sale of more advanced chips.
Unitree’s robots are already popular in China and abroad, often featured in social media videos performing parkour and kung-fu, and are used in Western academic research. A base version of Unitree’s G1 humanoid costs approximately $15,000, significantly undercutting competitors priced in the hundreds of thousands. However, critics warn of the risks of Chinese dominance in the commercial robotics market. Gavin Kenneally, CEO of Ghost Robotics, argued that the US risks ceding the market to Chinese companies like Unitree, drawing parallels to the drone market dominated by DJI.
Jensen Huang, Nvidia’s CEO, emphasised the economic potential of the collaboration, stating that humanoid robots will bring physical AI to the world’s largest industries, opening a multitrillion-dollar economic opportunity. The announcement comes as some politicians have proposed bans on Chinese humanoids, highlighting the tension between economic opportunity and national security in the rapidly evolving robotics sector.
