Humanoid robots are machines equipped with artificial intelligence (AI) that physically resemble humans and can emulate human movements and communications. While many of us can still only dream of a future Rosie-like humanoid maid from The Jetsons, useful humanoid robots could be arriving sooner than many think. Sho.
This is NVIDIA’s opinion (NVDA 3.10%) CEO Jensen Huang has led the company he co-founded in 1993 to become the world’s second-largest company by market capitalization (second only to Apple, but not by much).
Earlier this month, Huang delivered a keynote speech to open the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2025 and co-hosted the CES Financial Analyst Conference. One of the most exciting things for NVIDIA stock investors, he says, is that “I’m confident that less than 10 years from now, everyone will be amazed at how good humanoid robots are.” That’s what he said.
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Humanoid robot market is predicted to grow rapidly
According to most estimates, the global humanoid robot market will be worth approximately $1 billion to $2.5 billion in 2024. Currently, the market mainly consists of humanoid robot hardware and software research and development. While some companies are in the early stages of using humanoids internally, at least in the United States, to my knowledge, no company yet sells humanoid robots, or “general purpose robots,” to the public. .
Market growth forecasts from reliable sources are almost universally very rosy and have recently increased significantly due to rapid advances in AI, namely the emergence of generative AI. Generative AI, which significantly increases the number of use cases for AI, burst onto the technology scene in late 2022 with OpenAI announcing its ChatGPT chatbot.
“The total addressable market for humanoid robots is projected to reach $38 billion by 2035, six times the previous estimate of $6 billion,” Goldman Sachs said in a report in early 2024. It will increase even more.” The last prediction was exactly one year ago. This is Goldman’s “base case” model, which it predicts will ship 1.4 million units by 2035. The company also cited accelerating advances in AI, as well as faster-than-expected growth in investment in the sector, as factors in the significant upward revision.
Under the company’s “bullish scenario,” shipments of humanoid robots are expected to reach 1 million units by 2031, four years earlier than the previous forecast of 2035. And then there’s the even more optimistic “thunder out of the blue” scenario.
Please note that the Goldman report I cited is from early 2024. The company is likely to release another report soon, and the base case market size forecast appears poised to be revised upward from $38 billion by 2035.
In fact, a hot press report published on January 17th by Technavio, a global technology research and advisory firm, predicts that the global humanoid robot market will reach $59.2 billion by 2029. equates to an impressive compound annual growth rate (CAGR). Approximately 70% from 2024.
Morgan Stanley is also very bullish on the growth prospects for humanoid robots. The investment banking firm predicts that by 2030, the number of humanoids working alongside humans in the United States will reach 40,000, and that number will jump to 8 million by 2040 and 63 million by 2025. .
How is Nvidia involved in humanoid robots?
Nvidia is a leader in providing chips, primarily graphics processing units (GPUs), and related technologies to enable AI capabilities. The company has been working in robotics for years, and its technology is used to train robots such as drones and warehouse robots, as well as the AI-powered “brains” within these machines.
Starting in 2024, Nvidia expanded into the field of humanoid robots and significantly strengthened its robotic product offering. This has only been possible with the advent of generative AI.
In March 2024, Nvidia introduced the Project GR00T (Generalist Robot 00 Technology) AI foundation model for humanoid robots. Robots equipped with the GR00T will be “designed to understand natural language and emulate movement by observing human behavior,” the company said in a press release. As part of this effort, we also announced a new computer for humanoid robots, Jetson Thor, and major upgrades to the Isaac robotics platform, including generative AI foundation models and tools for simulation.
At the same time, Nvidia is “building a comprehensive AI platform for leading humanoid robotics companies including 1X Technologies, Agility Robotics, Apptronik, Boston Dynamics, Figure AI, Fourier Intelligence, Sanctuary AI, Unitree Robotics, and Xpeng Robotics.” Announced. Part of China’s XPeng electric vehicle company), etc. ”
At CES 2025, Huang announced additional efforts to develop humanoid robots powered by AI. Essentially, the company has created a full stack of software, hardware, and tools to enable companies to develop humanoid robots. This includes training, simulation, and induction.
All or nearly all of the major companies in the humanoid robotics space use Nvidia technology to develop their robots. In my view, Nvidia stock is the best bet, at least for now, for people looking to invest in the potentially huge humanoid robot market.
