Heavy-payload humanoids are rare: 50 lb is the industry dividing line, and Chinese firms are absent
chris_j_paxton · x · 2026-10-07
Chris Paxton notes heavy-industry humanoids are scarce: Figure and Optimus can't yet do most real work needing 50 lb payload — the 40→50 lb jump is far harder than it sounds, and 50 lb is the OSHA manual-handling limit. Countering the "China is ahead" narrative, he points out almost no Chinese companies (only Agibot's new a2 max) and no Europeans appear on the industry list; US firms are clearly the most industry-focused.
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