Figure AI Retires F.02 Robot Fleet in Molten Steel Stunt
The San Jose robotics startup staged an autonomous leap into a Finnish forge inspired by Terminator 2 as it prepares for its next hardware cycle.
San Jose-based humanoid robotics company Figure AI has released footage showing the retirement of its F.02 robot fleet, which involved sending the machines into molten steel in an homage to the climax of Terminator 2: Judgment Day, as reported by Mashable Tech (https://mashable.com/tech/figure-robotics-decommissions-robots-molten-metal).
The retirement marks the conclusion of the F.02 platform as Figure AI prepares to deploy its next-generation F.03 hardware. To stage the send-off, the startup brought on Terminator star Arnold Schwarzenegger, consulted former members of the MythBusters production team, and filmed at an industrial metal foundry in Imatra, Finland.
According to company statements detailed by Mashable Tech, Figure AI programmed the humanoid robots to autonomously jump into a vat of liquid steel, while lowering one unit into the forge by chain to recreate the film's signature thumbs-up gesture.
Preparing for the production required testing at the company's San Jose headquarters, where engineers trained the bipedal units to execute the jump onto large airbags. Finding a location willing to host the stunt proved difficult; foundries across the United States and Mexico declined because of safety concerns regarding the submersion of lithium-ion batteries into commercial industrial equipment.
The company stated that the steel resulting from the melted F.02 units has been converted into limited-edition commemorative items available for purchase online. In a blog post discussing the project, Figure AI noted that the video documents physical hardware executing autonomous maneuvers on location rather than computer-generated imagery.
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