Renault to Deploy 350 Humanoid Robots for Heavy Lifting, Boosting Efficiency Without Replacing Workers—For Now

Renault announced it will deploy approximately 350 headless humanoid robots named Calvin-40 at its French electric vehicle plant within the next 18 months to handle heavy items such as tires and body panels. Developed by U.S. startup Wandercraft, these robots can repeatedly lift 40-kilogram loads daily without rest and are equipped with waist-mounted cameras and status-indicating LED lights. Renault aims to reduce per-vehicle production labor hours by 30% and cut manufacturing costs by 20% within five years through this initiative. Although the robots have already been integrated into actual production lines, Renault emphasized they are currently used only to assist with high-intensity physical tasks. Due to limitations in speed and flexibility, they will not replace human workers in the near term—particularly in final assembly stages. In June 2025, Renault invested $75 million in Wandercraft to accelerate the deployment of this technology.