Figure Decommissions Humanoid Robots in Finland

The American company Figure has decommissioned a batch of humanoid robots, model Figure 02, by throwing them into a furnace with molten metal at a plant in the Finnish city of Imatra. A video of the decommissioning process features actor Arnold Schwarzenegger.

The company explained the decommissioning as a transition to the next model, Figure 03. Maintaining the old generation of robots was deemed too costly, and regular disassembly was considered too time-consuming, distracting staff from designing future F.04 systems. Complete melting was chosen to protect specialized parts and intellectual property from copying.

According to the company, enterprises in the USA and Mexico refused to decommission the robots, including due to the installed lithium-ion batteries. As a result, the operation was carried out at the Imatra plant in a 75-ton electric arc furnace. The planning involved former hosts of the TV show "Mythbusters" and actor Arnold Schwarzenegger, who previously suggested the idea on social network X. The published footage shows the actor dropping the first robot into the melt, after which the other devices jump in on their own.

Before filming, the robots were trained to move using stuntmen and a special artificial intelligence model at the headquarters in San Jose, where jumps were practiced on inflatable cushions. Figure emphasized that computer graphics were not used during filming. The exact number of destroyed devices is not disclosed, but the organization stated that most of the F.02 fleet was eliminated. The remaining metal was taken to the USA to make souvenirs worth $500 and $1900.