Agility Robotics Says Digit 5 Humanoid Can Work Over 20 Hours a Day With New Battery

In a move to ensure its Digit 5 humanoid robot can be put to work for over 20 hours a day, Agility Robotics is teaming up with the British firm Nyobolt on a fast-charging system.

The October 15 announcement of the partnership introduced a battery that will give the machine 90 minutes of run time from a mere nine minutes of charging, something that should reduce downtime in manufacturing and warehouse operations.

With such a battery, the companies contend that Digit 5 will be able to put in over two full shifts in 24 hours, taking only brief breaks to recharge.

Nine Minutes of Charging, 90 Minutes of Work

By way of an operating-to-charging ratio of 10 to 1, the new system has the robot working 10 minutes to every minute it spends on the charger. That sort of improvement is what makes Digit 5 a more viable proposition for businesses wanting their robots in service all day.

"For our customers, Digit's uptime is the business case," Daniel Diez, chief business officer at Agility Robotics, said. He went on to note that the planned operating hours can improve the economics of deploying humanoid robot fleets.

Nyobolt brings to the table power systems suited to the objectivities of industry and fast-charging cells; according to the company, this affords high power without the added weight of the battery, which is no small matter for a humanoid having to carry its own supply.

Designed for Warehouses and Factories

Agility is developing Digit 5 for industrial settings where it can shoulder the same repetitive physical labour as a person. The firm has already put prior iterations of Digit to use in commercial applications to improve the platform, amassing some 65,000 hours of real-world operation across its deployment history, though not with the Digit 5.

Every time a robot has to charge in these environments, it is not doing useful work, thus battery performance is key.

“The partnership reflects the demanding requirements of industrial robotics, where battery performance must remain reliable during repeated operations,” said Sai Shivareddy, co-founder and CEO of Nyobolt, describing the demands of industrial robotics.

Commercial Rollout Expected in 2027

Agility is looking to have Digit 5 with Nyobolt’s technology in the hands of some customers by the first half of 2027, with wider availability to follow in the next six or nine months. But details such as pricing, capacity and long-term performance numbers from an independent source have not been disclosed yet.

And the 20-hour day and the 90-minute runtime are only projections for now. When the deployments get under way, it is yet to be seen if Digit 5 can hold up to those numbers in a busy workplace.