On Tuesday, Nvidia, the leading chip manufacturer, unveiled Project GR00T, also known as Generalist Robot 00 Technology, with the potiential to transform the development of humanoid robots.
This initiative seeks to equip humanoid robots with AI-driven capabilities for human-like comprehension and motion, Indian Express reported.
The development comes after AI robotics company, Figure AI, showcased its ChatGPT-powered humanoid robot, Figure 01.
What is Project GR00T
Project GR00T serves as a foundational model for humanoid robots, representing Nvidia's forefront efforts in advancing robotics and embodied AI. Embodied AI refers to robots, virtual assistants, or other intelligent systems capable of interacting with and learning from their physical environment.
GR00T, short for Generalist Robot 00 Technology, enables robots constructed on this framework to comprehend natural language and replicate human movements by observing human actions, facilitating rapid learning of coordination, dexterity, and other essential skills to navigate and interact with the real world effectively, the report noted.
During his keynote speech at the recent GPU Technology Conference (GTC), Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang showcased videos demonstrating such robots performing various tasks. "Developing foundational models for general humanoid robots is among the most compelling challenges in AI today," remarked Huang.
How was it trained
The model has undergone training on NVIDIA GPU-accelerated simulation, empowering humanoid robots to learn from human demonstrations through imitation learning, as well as from the robotics platform NVIDIA Isaac Lab for reinforcement learning, IE reported.
Imitation learning involves observing an expert performing a task and mimicking those actions, while reinforcement learning is a machine learning technique that trains software to make decisions to achieve optimal outcomes.
In simpler terms, Project GR00T functions as a multimodal AI system, serving as the cognitive center for humanoid robots, enabling them to acquire new skills and interact with the real world. Leading figures in robotics, including Figure, Boston Dynamics, Apptronik, Agility Robotics, Sanctuary AI, and Unitree, are reportedly collaborating with Nvidia to harness GR00T's capabilities.
More for Nvidia robotics
Alongside Project GR00T, the company has introduced enhancements to Isaac with Isaac Manipulator and Isaac Perceptor, incorporating multi-camera 3D vision. As implied by their names, Manipulator facilitates robots in manipulating objects within their surroundings, while Perceptor aids in their perception.
Nvidia also revealed a new computer, Jetson Thor, tailored to assist humanoid robots built on Nvidia's Thor system-on-chip (SoC). Thor serves as the brainpower behind these robots, with the chip engineered to manage intricate tasks while ensuring safe and intuitive human-robot interaction, IE reported.
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