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Robots / Other form / Microduck

Microduck, official image from Pollen Robotics
© Pollen Robotics · official image · original page

Other form · Research and development

Microduck

Where the robot stands : Paper announcement · Proof: statements only. Vuntum has not yet recorded any proof of a demonstration or a sale. See the rule

Useful for: Education and programming · Research and development

Where used: School and laboratory · For: Research and education · Maker based in France

by Pollen Robotics

Key facts

The Microduck is a biped robot from Pollen Robotics, intended for research and education. It stands 25 cm tall and 14 cm wide, with 15 degrees of freedom. It is available for preorder in the US at 399 USD, excluding taxes and shipping (launch price).

Recommended price
399 USD
Claimed by the manufacturerClaimed by the manufacturer. Pollen Robotics (official product pages), published 27 August 2026. before taxes and shipping; introductory price. Original text: “Microduck is available for pre-order today at an introductory price of $399 before taxes and shipping.”

United States market. before taxes and shipping; introductory price.

Height
25 cm
Claimed by the manufacturerClaimed by the manufacturer. Pollen Robotics (official product pages), accessed 13 October 2026. Original text: “25 cm tall, 14 cm wide”
Battery runtime
1 h
Claimed by the manufacturerClaimed by the manufacturer. Pollen Robotics (official product pages), accessed 13 October 2026. around one hour, depending on use. Original text: “Removable NP-F550 camera battery, 2600 mAh, around one hour of runtime depending on use”

Around one hour, depending on use.

Degrees of freedom
15 count
Claimed by the manufacturerClaimed by the manufacturer. Pollen Robotics (official product pages), accessed 13 October 2026. Original text: “15 degrees of freedom, across articulated legs, head and neck”

Not disclosed weight, availability in France

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Overview

Microduck is a bipedal robot from the French manufacturer Pollen Robotics. It is aimed at research and education, notably education and programming, as well as research and development.

According to the manufacturer, Microduck is 25 cm tall and 14 cm wide. It carries a Rockchip RK3566 computer with an AI accelerator, along with a camera and a lidar. Its stated battery life is about one hour, depending on use.

On the software side, the manufacturer states that there is a public SDK with open source code, under the Apache-2.0 licence. The robot can also be simulated in MuJoCo. TRON 2 also has a public SDK and simulation in MuJoCo. The comparison between Microduck and TRON 2 is available in detail.

According to the manufacturer, Microduck is available as a “preorder” on the United States market. On that market, the manufacturer's recommended retail price is 399 USD, excluding taxes and shipping, and it is a launch price. Presented in 2026, the robot was announced in August of the same year, according to ロボスタ Robotstart and Numerama (Robots).

Specifications

11 verified specifications · updated on

Microduck, specifications and levels of evidence
SpecificationMicroduckLevel of evidence
Manufacturer suggested price399 USDOriginal text: “$399”Claimed by the manufacturerClaimed by the manufacturer. Pollen Robotics (official product pages), published 27 August 2026. before taxes and shipping; introductory price. Original text: “Microduck is available for pre-order today at an introductory price of $399 before taxes and shipping.”
AvailabilityPre-orderOriginal text: “available for pre-order today”Reported · TechRadarReported. TechRadar (Robotics), published 27 August 2026. Original text: “It's up for pre-order priced at $399”Claimed by the manufacturerClaimed by the manufacturer. Pollen Robotics (official product pages), published 27 August 2026. Original text: “Microduck is available for pre-order today at an introductory price of $399 before taxes and shipping.”
Announcement date2026-08-27Original text: “2026年8月27日”Reported · ロボスタ RobotstartReported. ロボスタ Robotstart, published 13 October 2026. Original text: “Hugging FaceグループのPollen Roboticsは2026年8月27日、新しいロボット「Microduck」を発表した。”Reported · NumeramaReported. Numerama (Robots), published 27 August 2026. Original text: “Le 27 août 2026, l’entreprise et sa filiale bordelaise Pollen Robotics ont dévoilé Microduck”
Height25 cmReported · GIGAZINEReported. GIGAZINE, published 24 October 2026. Original text: “Microduckは2026年8月末に発表されたアヒル型ロボット。高さは25cm、重量はわずか800gですが、15個のモーター・カメラ・小型深度センサー・2つの慣性計測ユニット(IMU)、物をつかむことができる関節式のくちばしを備えており、歩行・着席・しゃがみ込み・転倒からの立ち上がり・ローラースケートといった動作が…”Reported · TechRadarReported. TechRadar (Robotics), published 27 August 2026. Original text: “Microduck is a 25-centimeter-tall educational robot”Claimed by the manufacturerClaimed by the manufacturer. Pollen Robotics (official product pages), accessed 13 October 2026. Original text: “25 cm tall, 14 cm wide”
Width14 cmClaimed by the manufacturerClaimed by the manufacturer. Pollen Robotics (official product pages), accessed 13 October 2026. Original text: “25 cm tall, 14 cm wide”
Battery runtime1 hClaimed by the manufacturerClaimed by the manufacturer. Pollen Robotics (official product pages), accessed 13 October 2026. around one hour, depending on use. Original text: “Removable NP-F550 camera battery, 2600 mAh, around one hour of runtime depending on use”
Locomotion typeBipedReported · TechRadarReported. TechRadar (Robotics), published 27 August 2026. Original text: “Both robots are bipedal with a somewhat squat posture”Reported · The VergeReported. The Verge (Robot), published 27 August 2026. Original text: “a one-eyed biped standing just under 10 inches tall”Claimed by the manufacturerClaimed by the manufacturer. Pollen Robotics (official product pages), accessed 13 October 2026. Original text: “A 25 cm tall biped robot”
Degrees of freedom15 countReported · TechRadarReported. TechRadar (Robotics), published 27 August 2026. Original text: “15 degrees of freedom”Claimed by the manufacturerClaimed by the manufacturer. Pollen Robotics (official product pages), accessed 13 October 2026. Original text: “15 degrees of freedom, across articulated legs, head and neck”
CameraYes, a cameraOriginal text: “カメラ”Reported · GIGAZINEReported. GIGAZINE, published 24 October 2026. Original text: “Microduckは2026年8月末に発表されたアヒル型ロボット。高さは25cm、重量はわずか800gですが、15個のモーター・カメラ・小型深度センサー・2つの慣性計測ユニット(IMU)、物をつかむことができる関節式のくちばしを備えており、歩行・着席・しゃがみ込み・転倒からの立ち上がり・ローラースケートといった動作が…”Reported · NumeramaReported. Numerama (Robots), published 27 August 2026. Original text: “celui-ci possède 15 moteurs, une caméra, un lidar et deux unités de mesure inertielle (IMU)”Reported · The VergeReported. The Verge (Robot), published 27 August 2026. Original text: “has a camera, motion sensors, LiDAR, and articulated legs, head, and neck”
LiDARYes, LiDAROriginal text: “un lidar”Reported · NumeramaReported. Numerama (Robots), published 27 August 2026. Original text: “celui-ci possède 15 moteurs, une caméra, un lidar et deux unités de mesure inertielle (IMU)”Reported · The VergeReported. The Verge (Robot), published 27 August 2026. Original text: “has a camera, motion sensors, LiDAR, and articulated legs, head, and neck”Claimed by the manufacturerClaimed by the manufacturer. Pollen Robotics (official product pages), accessed 13 October 2026. Original text: “Compact LiDAR, an 8x8 time-of-flight matrix”
Onboard computeRockchip RK3566 with AI acceleratorClaimed by the manufacturerClaimed by the manufacturer. Pollen Robotics (official product pages), accessed 13 October 2026. Original text: “Rockchip RK3566 with AI accelerator”

Do you have a source? Tell us

Claimed by the manufacturerReported by a news outletIndependent test observed or measuredNo: confirmed absence · Not disclosed: no source

Program this robot

Verified on

Programmable: yes.

Accessible from the advanced level. To start: public SDK.

SDK and languages

Public SDK
Yes Reported · NumeramaReported. Numerama (Robots), published 27 August 2026. Original text: “Seuls son SDK, sa simulation et l’ensemble de sa pile logicielle d’apprentissage par renforcement sont publiés sur GitHub sous licence Apache 2.0.”Yes Claimed by the manufacturerClaimed by the manufacturer. Pollen Robotics (official product pages), accessed 13 October 2026. Original text: “The SDK, the simulation and the full RL training stack are on GitHub.”Yes Claimed by the manufacturerClaimed by the manufacturer. Pollen Robotics (official product pages), published 27 August 2026. Original text: “The software is available today: the main Microduck repository contains the SDK and robot software”
Open-source SDK
Yes Reported · The VergeReported. The Verge (Robot), published 27 August 2026. Original text: “The Microduck’s software is open-source”Yes Reported · ロボスタ RobotstartReported. ロボスタ Robotstart, published 13 October 2026. Original text: “Pollen Roboticsが手がけるMicroduckのソフトウェアはオープンソースとして公開されている”Yes Claimed by the manufacturerClaimed by the manufacturer. Pollen Robotics (official product pages), published 27 August 2026. Original text: “Its open-source software stack covers robot control, simulation, reinforcement learning, and sim-to-real deployment.”
SDK licence
Apache 2.0 Reported · NumeramaReported. Numerama (Robots), published 27 August 2026. Original text: “Seuls son SDK, sa simulation et l’ensemble de sa pile logicielle d’apprentissage par renforcement sont publiés sur GitHub sous licence Apache 2.0.”Apache-2.0 Claimed by the manufacturerClaimed by the manufacturer. Pollen Robotics (official product pages), accessed 13 October 2026. Original text: “Apache-2.0The whole software stack, permissively licensed”

Simulation

MuJoCo simulation
Yes Reported · NumeramaReported. Numerama (Robots), published 27 August 2026. Original text: “dont la simulation est proposée sur Hugging Face et repose sur le moteur physique MuJoCo”Yes Claimed by the manufacturerClaimed by the manufacturer. Pollen Robotics (official product pages), accessed 13 October 2026. Original text: “MuJoCoThe physics sim every policy is trained in”

Official code

  • pollen-robotics/microduck · Other official repository

    Apache-2.0 · 9,637 stars · Rust · Active, last updated 19/10/2026

    A Tiny biped duck robot 🦆

  • pollen-robotics/microduck_rl · Other official repository

    Apache-2.0 · 2,471 stars · Python · Active, last updated 12/10/2026

    RL training environments for Microduck (mjlab)

  • pollen-robotics/microduck_emotions · Other official repository

    Apache-2.0 · 27 stars · Python · Active, last updated 07/10/2026

  • pollen-robotics/microduck-gst-plugins · Other official repository

    Apache-2.0 · 20 stars · Shell · Active, last updated 25/08/2026

    Prebuilt aarch64 GStreamer plugins for the micro duck robot: Rockchip MPP hardware encoders and gst-plugins-rs WebRTC. Built in CI from pinned upstream sources.

  • pollen-robotics/microduck-arena · Other official repository

    Licence not recognised automatically · 1 stars · Python · Active, last updated 19/10/2026

    Race Microduck policies on a clock you can trust — source for the pollen-robotics/microduck-arena Space

See the other repository

  • pollen-robotics/microduck-challenges · Other official repository

    Licence not recognised automatically · 0 stars · Python · Active, last updated 15/10/2026

    One training folder per open Microduck Arena challenge

Figures read on GitHub on 20/10/2026.

Community projects

  • AI-FanGe/Microduck-build-tutorial · Project independent of the manufacturer

    MIT · 1,303 stars · Python · Active, last updated 11/09/2026

    A practical hardware and software setup for a compact RL-powered biped robot.

  • fanhao375/microduck-replica · Project independent of the manufacturer

    Licence not recognised automatically · 1,223 stars · HTML · Active, last updated 20/10/2026

    Microduck 复刻 · 从官方 MJCF 与 Rust 源码反推出的装配图、CAD 装配体与完整电控方案 | Mechanical + electronics reconstruction of Pollen Robotics' Microduck

  • LuwuDynamics/xgoduck_hardware · Project independent of the manufacturer

    Licence not recognised automatically · 687 stars · Active, last updated 20/10/2026

    Build your own robot duck. XGO-Duck is a 3D-printable biped powered by Arduino UNO Q and 15 servos, adapted from Pollen Robotics' Microduck. Includes mechanical models, PCB designs, a BOM, and an assembly guide. Build it, explore its motion, and make it your own.

  • rokbenko/quackd · Project independent of the manufacturer

    Apache-2.0 · 267 stars · Python · Active, last updated 20/10/2026

    One CLI for all your robots. Connect them, command them, and let them work together, each with an LLM for a brain (Claude, OpenAI, Gemini, Grok, or local via Ollama or vLLM), VLAs for arms and decision LLMs (Jev, Laya, Kev). Drives Microduck, Open Duck Mini, LeRobot, XLeRobot, AlohaMini, ToddlerBot, or any ROS 2 base from a laptop, offboard.

  • joeynyc/awesome-microduck · Project independent of the manufacturer

    CC0-1.0 · 156 stars · JavaScript · Active, last updated 19/10/2026

    A curated list of software, simulators, policies, agent tools and coverage for the Pollen Robotics / Hugging Face Microduck robot

See the 5 other repositories

  • Vottivott/microduck-playground · Project independent of the manufacturer

    Apache-2.0 · 70 stars · Python · Active, last updated 29/09/2026

    Reproducible Microduck RL experiments, policies, simulation assets, and hardware add-ons

  • 7757/fanduck · Project independent of the manufacturer

    Licence not recognised automatically · 61 stars · Active, last updated 03/10/2026

    超能花钱鸭 Fanduck · Microduck 已复刻成功！分享实机演示、物料清单、3D 打印、板件、制作工具与 3D 镜像工作台。Build resources from our completed Microduck replica.

  • microai-lab/microduck-studio · Project independent of the manufacturer

    MIT · 51 stars · Python · Active, last updated 15/09/2026

    Local web studio for developing, debugging, visualizing, and safely orchestrating Microduck robot and reinforcement learning workflows.

  • bsprenger/microduck-rl-torch · Project independent of the manufacturer

    Apache-2.0 · 36 stars · Python · Active, last updated 12/09/2026

    Portable PyTorch-native Microduck simulation and training environment powered by mujoco-torch.

  • zhuoligetu123/microduck-hd1910m · Project independent of the manufacturer

    Licence not recognised automatically · 35 stars · Rust · Active, last updated 06/10/2026

    Radxa ZERO 3W + 飞特 HD1910M ×15 + BNO08x。包含行走、拾取、起身、翻滚四模型适配、Rust 后端/底层、RL 训练与 MuJoCo 仿真源码；客户端APK。 MicroDuck HD1910M native runtime, RL integration, deployment and APK release

Figures read on GitHub on 20/10/2026.

Estimate the cost over several years

Open the simulator

The calculation runs in your browser, nothing is sent. The only figures filled in come from the robot’s sheet, with their source. Everything else depends on your use: your quotes, your electricity bill, your working days. An empty field counts as zero.

Use
Purchase and subscription

source

This price is in USD and is not converted: type the other amounts in the same currency.

Electricity

It is on your electricity bill.

Commissioning and operation

Maintenance is only counted once the warranty has ended.

What the robot brings in

For instance the working hours saved. Optional: used for the break-even point.

Result

Total cost over 5 years: US$399

All amounts are in USD.

Cost year by year
YearPurchase and setupRunningYear totalCumulative
Year 1US$399US$0US$399US$399
Year 2US$0US$0US$0US$399
Year 3US$0US$0US$0US$399
Year 4US$0US$0US$0US$399
Year 5US$0US$0US$0US$399

Method: purchase price, integration and training are paid in the first year; the other items every year; electricity is the power draw times the hours, the days and the price per kWh. No amount is converted from one currency to another, and Vuntum adds no figure of its own.

Open on its own page

Proof log

The dated events Vuntum found for this robot, newest first, each with its source. A line appears only if its date and its source page are known.

10 proofs: 8 from independent sources, 2 from the maker, 0 from other sources.

  1. , Reported by an independent source: 2 values on the sheet

    Independent source. Source: GIGAZINE

  2. , Reported by an independent source: 1 value on the sheet

    Independent source. Source: ロボスタ Robotstart

  3. , Robot announced

    Independent source. Source: ロボスタ Robotstart

  4. , Robot announced

    Independent source. Source: Numerama (Robots)

  5. , Maker’s promise: Delivery, 24 December 2026

    Maker. Source: Pollen Robotics (pages produit officielles)

  6. , Reported by an independent source: 4 values on the sheet

    Independent source. Source: The Verge (Robot)

  7. , Reported by an independent source: 5 values on the sheet

    Independent source. Source: Numerama (Robots)

  8. , Reported by an independent source: 3 values on the sheet

    Independent source. Source: TechRadar (Robotics)

  9. , Sale: Pre-order open

    Maker. Source: Pollen Robotics (pages produit officielles)

  10. , Sale: Pre-order open

    Independent source. Source: TechRadar (Robotics)

News about this robot

All news

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ClaimedPaper announcementLight sheet
Cite this sheet

Plain citation

“Microduck”, Vuntum, updated 13 October 2026, https://vuntum.com/en/robots/pollen-robotics-microduck

APA format

Vuntum. (2026, October 13). Microduck. https://vuntum.com/en/robots/pollen-robotics-microduck

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