[Report] Robots Becoming More Humanlike... NVIDIA Turns Movie Futures into Reality

Robots at GTC 2025
Cleaning and speaking like humans
Adorable designs reminiscent of 'WALL-E'
Delicate responses refined through simulation

"Hello, my name is‥(Hello, my name is)"

Jensen Huang, CEO of NVIDIA, emphasized the importance of 'robots' again at the annual developer conference 'GTC 2025' held this year in San Jose, California, USA. At the NVIDIA booth visited by reporters on the 20th (local time), robots also played a major role. Robots with functions indistinguishable from humans, which previously only appeared in movies, have rapidly approached reality in just a few years.

On the 20th (local time), at the annual developer conference 'GTC 2025' held in San Jose, California, USA, a robot from humanoid robot manufacturer 1X is greeting people. Photo by Junyi Park

NVIDIA is a company that designs and manufactures artificial intelligence (AI) chips, but it does not produce robots directly. Instead, it supports robot manufacturers by providing hardware such as chipsets and modules, development environments, and simulation software to help develop their products.

At GTC, CEO Huang announced 'Isaac Groot N1,' the world's first open-source humanoid robot platform. Groot N1 is a cognitive model that enhances robot learning efficiency through virtual scenarios using vast amounts of synthetic data.

Inside the conference hall that day, NVIDIA’s robot model BDX Droid 'Blue' was roaming around various spots. With a cute design reminiscent of the robot from Disney·Pixar’s animated film 'WALL-E,' it had a flat head and a small torso, walking toddling like a child on two legs.

Although it could not converse, it freely moved its head in various directions and nodded as if understanding when asked questions. It even paused briefly when taking photos together.

On the 20th (local time), at the annual developer conference 'GTC 2025' held in San Jose, California, USA, Nvidia's robot model BDX Droid 'Blue' was roaming around the venue. Photo by Junyi Park

Blue also appeared in the latter part of CEO Huang’s keynote speech on the 18th, attracting public attention. The animated Blue from the video appeared on the stage where Huang stood and waddled around near him. This drew applause from the audience. Blue even responded to Huang’s command, "Move over there and stand," by moving accordingly.

CEO Huang explained, "This is how we will train robots in the future," noting that Blue is equipped with two NVIDIA computers.

He revealed that Disney Research is collaborating with NVIDIA and Google DeepMind to develop 'Newton,' an open-source physics engine. Alongside this, he announced key technologies for humanoid robot development, including ▲'Isaac Groot N1,' a universal foundation model serving as the robot’s brain, and ▲'Isaac Groot Blueprint' for synthetic data generation.

Among these, Isaac Groot N1 is provided pre-trained so humanoid robots can perform various tasks, with training conducted by learning from human demonstration data or generating data in simulation environments.

On the 20th (local time), at the annual developer conference 'GTC 2025' held in San Jose, California, USA, a robot from humanoid robot manufacturer 1X is moving objects. Photo by Junyi Park

At the venue, not only Blue but also various robots developed in collaboration with different companies by NVIDIA were showcased. A robot from humanoid robot manufacturer 1X, based on N1, demonstrated advanced daily living capabilities such as carrying objects or holding a vacuum cleaner to clean indoors.

In particular, the robot model designed to assist with household chores responded with a voice similar to a human’s during demonstrations and performed delicate cleaning by holding a vacuum cleaner and reaching every corner. Its size, voice, and behavior were all significantly more advanced than the rigid robot actions of the past.

However, there were moments when robots temporarily stopped working due to network disconnections. Some robots did not move without human control.

Meanwhile, attendees could experience a surgical robot from manufacturer Intuitive. By inserting a finger into one machine and performing virtual surgery on the connected screen, another connected machine performed surgery more delicately than an actual finger.

On the 20th (local time), at the annual developer conference 'GTC 2025' held in San Jose, California, USA, a participant is demonstrating a surgical robot from the surgical robot manufacturer Intuitive. Photo by Junyi Park

NVIDIA also showcased its semiconductor chip technologies embedded with various AI technologies such as robotics and autonomous vehicles. From the next-generation AI chip series announced by CEO Huang at this GTC, including Blackwell (2025) and Rubin (2026), to personal AI supercomputers 'DGX Spark' and 'DGX Station' that individuals can connect directly to laptops for AI tasks, all were available for viewing in person.

An NVIDIA representative explained, "It takes too long for humans to run simulations directly, but this system allows robots to experiment with many similar environments in virtual settings. By training robots extensively like this, in the future, they will be able to respond delicately to sensations such as touch and temperature, closely resembling humans."