Nvidia's 'Robot Brain' Chip Officially on Sale: $3499 Leads Physical AI Revolution

News Summary

NVIDIA officially launched the Jetson AGX Thor robot chip module on August 25, 2025, priced at $3,499. Dubbed the "robot brain," this development kit will begin shipping next month, marking a significant move by NVIDIA to seek new growth opportunities beyond the artificial intelligence sector.

Product Details

Core Specifications and Performance

The Jetson AGX Thor is based on NVIDIA's latest Blackwell GPU architecture, offering 7.5 times faster performance than its predecessor. Equipped with 128GB of memory, it is specifically designed to run large AI models. The chip can execute generative AI models, including large language models and vision models, functionalities crucial for humanoid robots.

Pricing Strategy

• Development Kit: $3,499 (for developers and prototyping)
• Mass Production Module: Thor T5000 module priced at $2,999 (minimum order quantity of 1,000 units)
• First Shipments: September 2025

Technical Advantages

The chip delivers up to 2,070 FP4 teraflops of computing performance, with 3.5 times better energy efficiency than its predecessor. This powerful computing capability enables robots to process complex environmental perception and decision-making tasks in real-time.

Market Positioning and Strategic Significance

Growth Opportunities

NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang stated that robotics represents the company's largest growth opportunity outside of the AI sector. Although the robotics business currently accounts for only about 1% of the company's total revenue, it shows strong growth momentum.

Industry Collaboration

Prominent companies including Agility Robotics, Amazon, Meta, and Boston Dynamics are utilizing NVIDIA's Jetson chips. NVIDIA has also invested in robotics startups such as Field AI.

Business Integration

NVIDIA recently merged its automotive and robotics divisions into a single business line, which reported Q2 sales of $567 million, a 72% year-over-year increase.

Application Areas

Humanoid Robots

The chip is specifically designed for humanoid robots requiring complex AI inference capabilities, enabling them to perform real-time environmental understanding, path planning, and task execution.

Autonomous Vehicles

The Jetson Thor chip can also be used in autonomous vehicles, particularly by Chinese brand car manufacturers. NVIDIA provides the specially optimized Drive OS operating system for automotive applications.

Industry Impact and Outlook

Physical AI Revolution

Rev Lebaredian, Vice President of Omniverse and Simulation Technology at NVIDIA, noted at the 2025 World Robot Conference that physical AI could unlock trillions of dollars in market value.

Competitive Landscape

With Tesla's Optimus robots already working in factories and the number of robots in Amazon warehouses approaching that of human workers, Jensen Huang's entry could propel the entire robotics industry into explosive growth.

Technology Ecosystem

Deepu Talla, Vice President of Robotics and Edge AI at NVIDIA, stated: "We don't build robots or cars, but we provide the computing infrastructure and related software for the entire industry."

Market Reaction

NVIDIA's stock closed at $181.48 on August 25, up 1.96%, with investors closely watching the upcoming Q2 earnings call scheduled for August 27.

This product launch demonstrates NVIDIA's strategic expansion from the AI chip sector into embodied robot intelligence, laying a crucial foundation for the intelligent development of the future robotics industry.