Pudu introduces D9 full-size humanoid following D7 and DH11 releases

Pudu Robotics has introduced D9, its first full-size bipedal humanoid, following the D7 semi-humanoid and DH11 dexterous hand released by Pudu X-Lab earlier in 2024. Announced on 19 December, D9 stands 170 cm tall, weighs 65 kg and has 42 degrees of freedom, with maximum joint torque of 352 N·m. Pudu says presales will open soon.

The launch demonstration showed D9 walking upright, navigating obstacles and slopes, and operating Pudu’s SH1 floor-cleaning machine. Pudu lists a flat-ground walking speed of up to 2 m/s. Its navigation system uses visual semantic information to build a three-dimensional representation of the environment for positioning and route planning.

Two seven-degree-of-freedom arms are paired with DH11 hands for grasping and manipulation. Pudu says its learning system draws on reinforcement learning and task datasets, while visual, tactile, force and audio sensors provide information for interaction and control. The cleaning demonstration illustrates how the humanoid could operate tools already used within Pudu’s service-robot business.

D9 extends a portfolio that includes specialised delivery and cleaning robots as well as the wheeled D7. At the announcement date, Pudu reported cumulative shipments of more than 80,000 service robots across over 60 countries and regions. Those totals cover the established company portfolio and are not D9 sales.

The company intends to use its existing product development, supply-chain and commercial channels to support the humanoid programme. D9 adds a bipedal platform to that effort, while its demonstrated mobility and manipulation remain distinct from confirmed customer deployments.