Hugging Face’s French subsidiary, Pollen Robotics, recently launched a new programmable personal robot called Microduck, which has quickly gained popularity. Since its debut last Thursday, more than 10,000 units have been sold, generating over $5 million in sales by Tuesday. This demand has led to delayed delivery times that now extend beyond the initially promised Christmas 2026 timeframe. The duck-shaped robot, priced at $399 each, features its own sensors, motors, and on-device computing powered by the RK3566 chip from Shanghai-based Rockchip.

Rockchip, a key player in AI hardware that supports edge device computing rather than cloud processing, utilizes technology licensed from the British semiconductor company ARM in its chip design. According to Omdia chief analyst Lian Jye Su, Rockchip’s chips are widely used for machine vision tasks like object detection and image recognition but lack the computing power for more complex AI devices. This on-device AI capability allows gadgets like Microduck to run generative AI applications securely without needing to transmit user data online.

Microduck weighs around 800 grams and serves as both an interactive toy and a development platform. It leverages open-source software, enabling it to learn through virtual simulations and goal-oriented commands. This product marks the second robot release from Pollen Robotics under Hugging Face, following a successful launch last spring where the first robot also sold over 10,000 units. Hugging Face acquired Pollen Robotics last year as part of its expansion in AI-powered robotics.

Adding further interest, Nvidia announced a $12.9 billion agreement to acquire Hugging Face just before the Microduck’s market release. Pollen Robotics highlighted Rockchip’s onboard 1 TOPS neural processing unit as a key feature, which compares to Nvidia’s forthcoming robotics chip offering 78 TOPS. The growing market for personal AI robots is also attracting competitors such as startup Zeroth and Mondo Robotics, which have launched similar humanoid and camera robots at various price points.