Hugging Face robot duck preorders top 20,000 after viral demo

The consumer robotics market usually moves slowly, but a recent keynote in Berlin changed the pace for one specific product. A video of Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang interacting with a group of small, waddling robots during his speech at the GTC Berlin conference spread widely online. The footage showed the devices stomping, falling over for simulated naps, and performing somersaults on voice commands.

Hugging Face executive Clem Delangue confirmed via social media that the viral moment pushed Microduck preorders past 20,000 units by the following day. The robots are manufactured by Pollen Robotics, a company that Hugging Face acquired in 2025. Because Nvidia purchased Hugging Face in September, the Microduck now operates within the GPU giant's corporate structure.

Delangue suggested the device could become the best-selling robot of the year, noting that promotional materials feature adults using the toys as well as children. The company expects to deliver the units in time for the Christmas holiday season. This is the second robot released by Hugging Face, following the Reachy Mini.

The Microducks are built on open-source hardware and were trained using Nvidia's technology stack. The system uses simulations to teach the robots basic behaviors like walking, sitting, and standing, which are included at launch. Pollen Robotics states that owners can teach their units new tricks and share those custom programs with the wider community.

The sudden surge in interest comes at a time when public sentiment toward artificial intelligence is mixed. Recent cyberattacks have drawn blame on AI systems, creating a skeptical environment for new tech products. Despite this backdrop, the lighthearted nature of the Microduck demonstration generated immediate consumer demand for the compact, voice-activated devices.