Agility's Digit 5 drops running: leg redesign trades speed for safety and heavy lifting
chris_j_paxton · x · 2026-10-21
Agility Robotics' earlier robots could run; the new Digit 5 can't. Co-founder Jonathan Hurst explains the tradeoff in IEEE Spectrum: backwards legs favor speed, while humanlike legs are better for lifting heavy items off the ground to high shelves. The Digit 5 redesign prioritizes workplace safety over raw mobility — a shift from flashy demos toward practical workloads. Chris Paxton highlighted this design rationale when sharing the piece.
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