Humanoid & robot atlas
Nadia
Photo: Florida Institute for Human and Machine Cognition with Boardwalk Robotics (official image), from robots.ihmc.us. Image policy
ResearchUnited States

Florida Institute for Human and Machine Cognition with Boardwalk Robotics · research humanoid

Nadia

A tall hydraulic-electric research humanoid named after gymnast Nadia Comaneci for its wide range of motion, with Moog integrated hydraulic actuators in the legs and spine, electric arms and a carbon-fibre shell, funded by the US Office of Naval Research for dangerous jobs such as firefighting and disaster rescue. IHMC says lessons from Nadia went into its 2026 humanoid Alex.

Price
—Not published
Height
190 cmTaller than 96%
Weight
100 kgHeavier than 83%
Payload
—Not published
Speed
3.5 km/hFaster than 29%
Battery
—Not published
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Why it matters

A research humanoid from Florida Institute for Human and Machine Cognition (IHMC) with Boardwalk Robotics.

Real-world use

Shown sparring with a person under VR teleoperation in December 2023.

Timeline

First shown
2023-12
Released
Not yet
Sparring demonstration video (reported by Reuters, December 2023)

Maker

Florida Institute for Human and Machine Cognition with Boardwalk RoboticsUniversity lab · founded 1990 · Pensacola, Florida, United States

federal research grants (ONR, ARL, DARPA, NASA, NSF and others); ONR multi-year contract for Alex; 501(c)(3) non-profit

How it stacks up

Against other humanoids that publish the figure. Pick a measure.

  1. NadiaFlorida Institute for Human and Machine Cognition (IHMC) with Boardwalk Robotics · 2023190 cm
  2. 4NE1NEURA Robotics · 2023180 cm
  3. Digit (2023 commercial version)Agility Robotics · 2023175 cm
  4. Figure 01Figure AI · 2023168 cm
  5. GR-1Fourier (Fourier Intelligence) · 2023165 cm
  6. ARTEMISRoMeLa (Robotics & Mechanisms Laboratory), UCLA · 2023142 cm
  7. Mirokaï (Miroki / Miroka)Enchanted Tools · 2023130 cm
  8. Mercury X1Elephant Robotics · 2023118 cm

Nadia is taller than 96% of the 305 other humanoids that publish a height. Bars show the 7 closest in date.

Height 190 cm 34 cm213 cm #10 of 306 · taller than 96%

Not published by the maker: payload, battery, price.

What it has been shown doing

1 of 14 skills we track, each from a public video or report. Demos can be staged or remote-controlled; we say so when the source does.

  • Rough groundDemoRemote-controlledIHMC milestone demo: crossed a cinder-block field, cleared debris and went through push doors under operator footstep/VR control · Sep 2022 · arxiv.org

Not shown yet:SortAssembleFoldKitchenToolsFineStairsGet upRunJumpCarryOn siteAutonomous

Public attention

A hidden gem: a recent robot with full published specs that gets little attention so far.

  • No Wikipedia article of its own yet
  • 2 news stories from reputable press listed on this page

Measures how much people read and write about a robot, not how good it is. Measured 2026-10-13; same method for every robot. How it is measured

What’s inside

The parts the company has talked about publicly.

Hands
simple
Movement
Walks on legs · 29 joints
Actuators & motors
Hybrid: Moog hydraulic Integrated Smart Actuators (derived from IIT's HyQ quadruped work) in the legs and spine; custom electric actuators in the pelvis/hip and spine yaw with planetary drives; off-the-shelf electric actuators with cycloidal drives in the arms. 29 joints with very large ranges of motion.
Materials & build
Carbon-fibre composite shell structures chosen for a high power-to-weight ratio.
AI & software
IHMC whole-body control and open-source robotics software; CAN bus inside the actuators and EtherCAT; VR teleoperation (used for boxing demos).
Other details
Demonstrated balancing, boxing, ping pong, door traversal, rough terrain and teleoperation. Funded by ONR, ARL, NASA Johnson Space Center and TARDEC; built with Boardwalk Robotics, Morfey Ltd and H4 Labs. IHMC now lists Nadia as legacy, succeeded by Alex.

Named suppliers:Moog

Lineage

Every Florida Institute for Human and Machine Cognition (IHMC) with Boardwalk Robotics humanoid in order.

  1. NadiaNadia2023Research
  2. Alex (IHMC full-body humanoid)Alex (IHMC full-body humanoid)2025Research

Watch Nadia

Video: IHMC Robotics on YouTube. Plays from youtube-nocookie.com when you press play.

Made, sold and where

Unit counts are usually company figures; analysts often disagree.

Price
Not published
How to get one
No official buying page found
Sold or delivered
not sold;
Where it is sold or used
IHMC, Pensacola, Florida, USA
Customers and pilots
Funders: US Office of Naval Research, Army Research Laboratory, NASA JSC, TARDEC

News

The latest 2, newest first. Summaries are ours; tap through for the original.

  1. IHMC's successor humanoid Alex walks untethered for ONR

    IHMC said Alex, which carries lessons from Nadia, completed its first off-site, off-tether demonstration in Maryland.

    IHMC
  2. Nadia's range of motion inspired by a gymnast

    Inspenet profiled the hybrid hydraulic-electric humanoid co-developed with Boardwalk Robotics for dangerous jobs.

    Inspenet

Sources

Figures come from press coverage. Every link below backs something on this page.

Inspenet Nadia Comaneci, inspiration of this humanoid IHMC IHMC's new humanoid Alex aces its first off-site, off-tether demonstration IHMC Robotics Humanoid robot design (Nadia, Alex)

Photos and logos only identify each robot and its maker. Simbeing is not affiliated with, sponsored by or endorsing any company, and nothing here is advertising. Figures are for statistics only and are not advice of any kind. Terms of use