, Research, Figure AI
Figure's retired robots jumped into molten steel, on purpose
Behind the stunt, these robots helped build 30,000+ BMW cars. Figure shared goals for speed and accuracy but not the results.
- Trained in simulation to jump into a furnace in Finland, 30 Sep 2026
- Arnold Schwarzenegger's idea: melt them, says Figure
- Helped build 30,000+ BMW X3 cars in ten months, says BMW
The facts
- Confirmed
BMW says the robots helped make 30,000+ BMW X3 cars in ten months, moving 90,000+ parts in about 1,250 hours of work.
BMW Group PressClub: humanoid robots in production - Confirmed
Figure says Arnold Schwarzenegger suggested melting the robots. They were trained in simulation to jump into molten steel at a foundry in Imatra, Finland: a 75-ton furnace, six melts, 24 hours.
F.02 Decommission (Figure AI)
Behind the headline
- Confirmed
Figure's own goals were 84 seconds per cycle, 99%+ correct placement and no human help per shift. Its post does not give the actual results.
F.02 Contributed to the Production of 30,000 Cars at BMW (Figure AI) - Confirmed
Figure says keeping them no longer made sense now that the newer F.03 is being built. It also wanted to protect its hardware designs, and taking each robot apart would have delayed the next model, F.04.
F.02 Decommission (Figure AI)
What the labels mean
- Confirmed
- The company or person involved says it, or an official document shows it.