Earlier this week, a captivating video emerged from Nvidia’s GTC Berlin conference showing company chief executive Jensen Huang interacting with a flock of waddling Microduck robots. During the keynote presentation, these small automated ducks stomped their tiny feet, made subtle R2-D2 style audio effects, sat down, collapsed onto the floor for simulated naps, and performed front flips upon hearing voice commands. The demonstration charmed viewers to such an extent that preorders for the Microducks surged past 20,000 units by the following day, as noted by Hugging Face executive Clem Delangue.
A Contender for the Holiday Season's Top Toy
Shipments for the Microducks are scheduled to arrive ahead of Christmas, positioning the devices to potentially become the most sought-after toy for the holiday shopping period. Delangue suggests the product could emerge as the top-selling robotic device of the year, appealing to adults just as much as children. Promotional footage for the hardware demonstrates that grown-ups are equally enthusiastic about playing with them, pointing to a broad consumer demographic.
Corporate Background and Open-Source Roots
The Microducks are open-source hardware developed by Pollen Robotics, a firm acquired by Hugging Face in 2025. Following the GPU giant Nvidia’s acquisition of Hugging Face in September, the technology now sits under the wider Nvidia corporate umbrella. This release marks the second robotic offering from Hugging Face, following the launch of the similarly compact Reachy Mini.
Simulation Training and Community Capabilities
Development of the Microducks relied on Nvidia’s computing architecture, utilizing virtual simulations to train the units in fundamental actions such as walking, sitting, and standing prior to shipment. According to Pollen Robotics, device owners possess the ability to train their individual robots with custom new commands and share those behavioral routines with the wider user community.
