We were promised it for decades, and here it is on preorder: a human-sized robot that walks through your kitchen, opens the door for guests, waters the plants and tidies the shelves. It's called NEO, it's built by the Norwegian company 1X Technologies, and the first deliveries to real homes are planned for 2026, starting in the United States[1].
On price, two options: $20,000 to buy, or $499 a month on subscription, with a six-month commitment[2]. For that, NEO stands about 5 ft 6, weighs around 30 kg, carries up to 25 kg, runs for four hours on a charge and hides its motors under a soft shell. It even packs a conversational AI to answer your questions[1].
What it can do (on paper)
The list is a dream: open doors, fetch objects, turn off the lights, and a "Chores" feature that schedules folding laundry and tidying shelves and rooms[1]. Emptying the dishwasher, watering the plants: NEO is meant to handle it[2]. The sci-fi butler, delivered to your door.
The catch that changes everything: a human on the line
Here's the part the demo videos don't shout about. In a hands-on test by a Wall Street Journal reporter, none of the tasks were done by the robot autonomously[2]. For the trickier chores — cleaning the bathroom, vacuuming — it's a 1X employee, VR headset on, taking the controls remotely: they see through the robot's cameras and guide its moves while the machine "learns"[2][1]. And every so often, NEO falls over[2].
And what about your privacy?
A camera-equipped robot walking and talking in your living room is already a presence. But when a remote operator can, on demand, see inside your home through its eyes, the question gets serious. 1X says it has guardrails in place to protect your privacy[2] — whether the thought of a stranger glancing at your kitchen to help fold your towels lets you sleep easy is another matter.
So, should you bite?
Let's be clear: NEO isn't a scam, it's a genuine first. But at $499 a month, you're not buying (yet) an autonomous butler — you're renting a robot that learns, backed by humans when it gets stuck, and that should improve over time[1]. The home robot finally exists; it just needs, for now, a little hand-holding. And if you live outside the United States, you'll have to wait until 2027[1].