Who is actually controlling your robot?
A practical way to separate autonomous tasks, remote assistance and local control before you believe a demonstration or place an order.
Source-based profile by Robots at Home. Checked .
EDUCATION / POLLEN ROBOTICS
Microduck
A small biped with an articulated beak, built to make movement and reinforcement learning approachable.
Preorder$399 introductory preorder (USD)
Before taxes and shipping. The introductory price and delivery target may change.
Build an ownership budget
THE INTENDED JOB
Who it is for.
Learners who want to train behaviors in simulation and eventually run them on real hardware.
SPECIFICATIONS
- Height
- 25 cm
- Actuators
- 15 motors
- Software
- Public control, simulation and RL training stack
- Intended users
- Development platform recommended for ages 16+
BEFORE YOU DECIDE
Read the small print.
It changes the picture.
- First deliveries are targeted before Christmas 2026, not confirmed as completed.
- The press kit marks several sensor and SDK details as provisional.
- Confirm the exact edition, current destination availability and delivered price with the seller. A listed product is not a live-stock guarantee.
LIVING WITH THE HARDWARE
What ownership involves.
- Assembly
- Pollen's current sales terms describe Microduck as shipped assembled. This is a preorder specification, with initial deliveries targeted before Christmas 2026.
- Computer & setup
- The public software runs the robot on an onboard Rockchip RK3566. Development and reinforcement-learning training use separate workflows; final consumer setup requirements remain provisional.
- Connectivity
- The public repository documents Wi-Fi configuration, Bluetooth laptop control and gamepad pairing. These describe the current software stack, not an independently verified shipping unit.
- Development access
- Public control software and a separate reinforcement-learning repository cover simulation, policy training and deployment. Confirm final hardware and SDK details before planning a project.
FOLLOW THE EVIDENCE
Sources & further reading
Checked . Product information describes published documentation, not our own hardware testing.