Nvidia's new robot training kit uses Chinese-made hands

Nvidia has unveiled a new humanoid robot hardware system that relies on mechanical hands made in China. The system, called Agile One SN, was presented by CEO Jensen Huang on Oct. 21 in Berlin. Huang stood behind a slide showing the Wuji Hand 2, a device from a company with roots in Shanghai.

The Agile One SN system pairs the Agile Robots body with Nvidia's Isaac robotics software and Jetson Thor computing platform. Huang described the setup as a flywheel to accelerate robotics development. Research institutions, including Stanford University and ETH Zurich, are expected to access the system in early 2027.

This is not the first time Nvidia has paired its software with Chinese hardware. On May 31, the company announced a reference humanoid design using a body from Unitree and hands from Sharpa. That system was scheduled for delivery in late 2026. Nvidia has not confirmed whether those deliveries have begun or if researchers will test both reference robots.

Wuji, founded in 2019 by Pan Yunzhe, moved its team to Shenzhen and secured backing from Ant Group, HSG, and Future Capital. A demo video released last week showed the Wuji Hand 2 spinning a pen autonomously while facing interference. Pan is based in Shanghai, where the company originated.

Sharpa, the other key partner, is headquartered in Singapore but has deep ties to Shanghai. The company was co-founded by David Li, the CEO of lidar firm Hesai. Sharpa has stated that its manufacturing research and development operations are located in Shanghai.

Industry experts note the rapid growth of Chinese robotic hand manufacturers. Keerthana Gopalakrishnan, a research lead at Google DeepMind, compared the two startups in a podcast last month. She said Sharpa's Wave hand is stronger, while the Wuji hand is closer in size to a human hand but possesses the strength of a ten-year-old. It was unclear if she was testing the new Wuji Hand 2 or an earlier version.

Zhu Mingxuan, a humanoid startup executive at JoyIn, said she found Wuji's hands light and effective for tasks, though they heat up easily. She noted that Sharpa's hands perform better but cost significantly more. Zhu, who previously worked at U.S. firm Figure, said hardware remains the main limitation in humanoid development, with hands being the primary challenge.

China is pushing its industry to develop core technologies, and mechanical hands are a key area of focus. Xiaomi reported last week that testing its robotic hand in a car factory showed most tasks require only a specific range of movement. Additionally, Meta has worked with Chinese startup Fourier on a humanoid prototype, according to The Information.