Humanoid robot safety at home: what to know before one moves in

A humanoid robot is a machine of about 30 kg or more with strong motors, cameras and a big lithium battery, built to walk around people. Makers say their home robots are designed to be safe, but there's no finished safety standard for humanoids in homes yet, and real incidents show what can go wrong. Here's what to weigh up, what Australian rules already apply, and a checklist to use before buying. Checked 2 November 2026.

By Domestic Robot · Editor: Christian Ganaban · Updated 2 November 2026

Researched, not testedThis guide is based on makers' safety statements, standards bodies, Australian regulators and reported incidents, all linked below. We haven't tested any humanoid's safety ourselves. It isn't legal or electrical advice.

Quick answer

Treat a humanoid like a heavy power tool that moves on its own, not like a toy. The main risks are physical (falls, strong limbs, pinch points), privacy (cameras, microphones and, for some robots, remote human operators), cybersecurity, and battery fire. There's no finished international safety standard for humanoids in homes: the personal-care robot standard is being revised and the legged-robot standard is still a draft for industrial sites. In Australia, the Australian Consumer Law treats an unsafe product as a major failure, suppliers must report serious injuries to the ACCC, and mains chargers fall under electrical safety rules. Before buying, ask what the robot weighs, how it stops, who can see through its cameras, how it's updated, and who services it here.

The main risks at a glance

Risk	Why it matters	What helps
Weight and falls	Published weights are about 27 to 35 kg (Unitree R1, 1X NEO, Unitree G1); Figure and Tesla haven't published theirs	Clear space; keep kids and pets away when it stands, walks or gets up
Strength and pinch points	Motors strong enough to lift or kick; joints can trap fingers	Prefer covered joints and soft exteriors; never reach into a moving robot
Malfunction	Robots have flailed or broken during demos	A reachable emergency stop; don't run unfamiliar moves near people
Privacy	Cameras and microphones; some robots let remote staff see your home	Find out who can connect, when, and what's stored
Cybersecurity	Flaws found in popular robots' Bluetooth and firmware	Update firmware; separate Wi-Fi; buy from makers that publish fixes
Battery	Large lithium-ion packs	Use only the supplied charger; don't charge near beds or sofas

Weight, strength and falls

Published weights for robots aimed at people: 1X NEO is 30 kg and 1.68 m (1X says it can lift 70 kg), the Unitree R1 about 29 kg and 1.23 m, and the Unitree G1 about 35 kg and 1.32 m. Figure and Tesla haven't published weights for their current models. A robot that heavy can injure someone if it falls on them or swings a limb, and a fall can also damage floors, glass doors and furniture.

Makers are designing for this. 1X says NEO has a soft body, covered joints with “no pinchpoints” and a tendon-driven design it calls “uniquely safe and compliant”. Figure says Figure 03 is wrapped in soft textiles with multi-density foam at pinch points. Unitree, by contrast, describes its robots as having “immense power output” and tells owners to keep a safe distance and operate with extreme caution. A distributor's G1 manual warns the robot can start getting up on its own, so stay clear.

What has gone wrong so far

Every incident below is from published reports; none involved a robot in a private home.

May and July 2025: Unitree H1 humanoids hanging from test frames flailed violently in videos from China; in the second case it pulled its frame over. No injuries were reported.
February and March 2026: the OECD's AI incident monitor logged a robot colliding with and injuring an older spectator in Chengdu, and a dancing humanoid hitting a child in the face at a Shaanxi shopping centre.
29 August 2026: a Unitree humanoid kicked a five-year-old in the face during a martial-arts demonstration at a science museum in Xiangyang, China; reports say she lost four teeth and a settlement was reached.
About 22 October 2026: Unitree's new H2-X lost its lower right leg after landing a side flip at a conference demo in Hangzhou. No one was hurt.
The Figure lawsuit: in November 2025 Figure's former head of product safety, Robert Gruendel, sued the company, alleging he was fired after warning that its robots could generate forces more than twice those needed to fracture an adult skull, and that a malfunction gashed a steel fridge door. These are allegations; Figure says he was dismissed for poor performance and calls the claims falsehoods.

The pattern: demonstrations of fast, acrobatic moves near crowds are where people have been hurt. A home robot doing slow chores is a different job, but the hardware is similar.

Kids and pets

Keep children and pets out of the robot's reach while it's moving, standing up or doing demo routines, and never let children operate the controller unsupervised.
Don't run flips, kicks or dances indoors. They're the moves behind most reported injuries.
Pets can trip a walking robot or get stepped on. Shut them out of the room until you know how it behaves.
Figure's chief executive has said he wouldn't yet let a robot run free around his own young children. That's a fair benchmark.

We couldn't find an age limit or a set clearance distance in Unitree's or 1X's official material, so set a generous one yourself. For robots designed for children, see our robot pets for kids.

Remote operators and privacy

Some home humanoids can be controlled by a person somewhere else. 1X NEO's “Expert Mode” lets a 1X expert supervise or guide the robot remotely at times you schedule, and 1X has said it can blur people and that you can mark areas off limits. Its chief executive has called this a “social contract”: share more data and the robot gets more useful. We couldn't confirm whether owners approve each session or how long footage is kept, and 1X's privacy policy (October 2025) doesn't specifically mention robot video or audio.

Before a camera-equipped robot moves in, ask: who can connect to it, from where, and with what notice? What's recorded and for how long? Can you use it without the cloud? Our companion robot privacy guide and robot vacuum privacy guide cover the same questions for smaller robots.

Hacking and software updates

Humanoids are connected computers. In September 2025 researchers disclosed “UniPwn”, a Bluetooth flaw that could give an attacker full control of Unitree's Go2, B2, G1 and H1 robots and spread between them; Unitree said most fixes were done by late September 2025. A research paper the same month reported a G1 sending telemetry to remote servers every five minutes without telling the operator, which Unitree disputes. In August 2026 two more flaws in the G1 EDU's firmware were reported. Keep firmware up to date, put the robot on a separate guest network, and favour makers that publish security fixes.

Batteries and charging

Humanoids run on large lithium-ion packs: NEO's is 842 Wh and Figure 03's is 2.3 kWh, far bigger than a phone or laptop. Figure says its pack has protection at the battery-management, cell, interconnect and pack level and is certified to the UN38.3 transport test. The ACCC's lithium-ion advice applies: use only the supplied charger, don't charge near beds or sofas or on soft surfaces, let the battery cool before charging, and stop using it if it swells, smells or overheats.

What Australian rules apply

Consumer guarantees. Under the Australian Consumer Law, a product that's unsafe is a major failure, so you can choose a refund or replacement from the Australian business that sold it. Importing a robot yourself makes this much harder.
Mandatory injury reports. Suppliers must tell the ACCC within two days of learning that a product caused or may have caused a death or serious injury, including through foreseeable misuse.
Electrical safety. Household equipment above 50 V AC is covered by the national Electrical Equipment Safety System (EESS), and chargers and power supplies are a listed category, so look for the RCM mark on the charger. We found no specific ruling on humanoid robots themselves; ask the seller.
Workplaces. If a humanoid is used at work, such as in aged care, work health and safety laws apply to the employer. NSW has published guidelines for collaborative robots.
Standards are catching up. ISO 13482 for personal care robots is being revised as a general service-robot standard; ISO 25785-1 for legged and other dynamically stable robots is still a draft and covers industrial sites, not homes; the industrial robot standard ISO 10218 excludes household products. In North America, UL 3300 covers consumer robots. An IEEE study group expects humanoid standards to take 18 to 36 months.

Checklist before you buy

What does it weigh, how fast can it move, and how do I stop it instantly?
Are its joints covered, and is the exterior padded?
Which safety standards has it been tested to, if any?
Can anyone at the company see or control it remotely? When, with what notice, and is it recorded?
How are security fixes delivered, and for how many years?
Is the charger RCM-marked, and what battery does it use?
Who services it in Australia, and what warranty does the Australian seller give?

The home humanoids getting closest to sale are compared in Tesla Optimus vs Figure vs 1X NEO; the one you can buy here today is the Unitree R1.

Common questions

Are humanoid robots safe to have at home?

They can be risky. Humanoids with published weights are about 27 to 35 kg, have strong motors and big batteries, and there's no finished safety standard for them in homes yet. Makers like 1X and Figure design soft, padded bodies, but you should keep children and pets clear, avoid fast moves indoors and check privacy and security before buying.

Has a humanoid robot ever hurt someone?

Yes, at public demonstrations. In August 2026 a Unitree humanoid kicked a five-year-old in the face at a museum demo in China, and other incidents at Chinese events were logged in 2026. We know of no reported injury from a humanoid in a private home.

Can someone watch me through a home robot?

With some robots, yes. 1X NEO's Expert Mode lets a 1X operator guide the robot remotely at times you schedule. Check who can connect, when, and what's recorded before buying any camera-equipped robot.

What safety standard applies to home humanoid robots?

None is finished for humanoids in homes. ISO 13482 for personal care robots is being revised, ISO 25785-1 for legged robots is a draft for industrial sites, and UL 3300 covers consumer robots in North America. In Australia, chargers fall under electrical safety rules and the Australian Consumer Law applies.

Are humanoid robots safe around kids and pets?

Keep them apart while the robot is moving. Most reported injuries involved fast demo moves near children or crowds, and Figure's chief executive has said he wouldn't yet let a robot run free around his own young children.

Sources

Get new reviews and price drops

One email when new reviews and price drops land. No spam, unsubscribe any time.