Digit Clears Major U.S. Safety Hurdle, Marking a Breakthrough Moment for Humanoid Robots in Industry

Digit, the humanoid robot developed by Agility Robotics, has cleared a major hurdle on its path from research prototype to industrial workhorse. The company announced that Digit has successfully passed a field evaluation conducted by a Nationally Recognized Test Lab (NRTL), the OSHA-recognized process required for advanced automation to operate inside U.S. fulfillment centers and other high-throughput facilities. It’s a milestone that moves humanoid robots firmly toward commercial reality.

For a robot designed to work alongside people, safety is nonnegotiable. Agility’s team of safety engineers, along with external partners, mapped Digit against the core standards that govern industrial machinery and collaborative systems—ANSI B11.0, ISO 12100, ISO 13849, ANSI B11.19, ISO 10218, and ANSI/RIA R15.08 among them. These standards shape everything from mechanical and electrical risk to how robots interact with nearby workers. Meeting them in a live environment is far more demanding than passing a lab inspection.

That’s why the NRTL evaluation matters. Leading fulfillment operators like Amazon and GXO require on-site NRTL audits before any robot touches production tasks. Evaluators look for potential mechanical, shock, or interaction hazards and confirm that systems comply with OSHA’s General Duty Clause, the mandate that workplaces be free from recognized hazards. Digit’s successful assessment inside a dynamic customer facility shows that the robot isn’t just capable—it’s safe, compliant, and ready for real work.

The certification has already expanded Digit’s operational footprint. Originally approved for automated putwall tasks, Digit is now being deployed in tote recycling workflows, and Agility believes even more complex applications are within reach. Passing NRTL evaluation also signals something deeper: a repeatable compliance pathway for humanoid robots. That unlocks insurance acceptance, customer trust, and the ability to scale deployments across multiple sites—key ingredients for any commercial robotics platform.

With this milestone behind it, Digit has crossed an important threshold. It is no longer simply a technological achievement but a deployable, insurable, and regulatory-approved asset. As more enterprises evaluate whether humanoids can support their warehousing or manufacturing operations, two questions will matter most: who is actually deploying in real facilities, and who has navigated the safety and compliance landscape required to operate in them? Agility is making the case that Digit now answers both.