It seems the robot uprising will be less about Terminators and more about efficiently moving plastic bins. Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada (TMMC) has officially moved past the trial phase, signing a commercial Robots-as-a-Service (RaaS) agreement to deploy Agility Robotics’ bipedal Digit robots in its Woodstock, Ontario, factory. The deal, announced on February 19, 2026, follows a successful year-long pilot program to evaluate the humanoids.
The 5’ 9" (175 cm) robots, capable of lifting payloads up to 35 lbs (16 kg), won’t be assembling the next RAV4 just yet. Instead, their initial duties are focused on the decidedly less glamorous, but essential, tasks of material handling. Specifically, the first wave of Digit robots will be loading and unloading totes from automated tuggers, feeding parts to the assembly line in a bid to reduce strain on their human colleagues and boost operational efficiency.
This isn’t just a handful of prototypes, either. Agility Robotics is scaling up production at its 70,000-square-foot RoboFab manufacturing plant in Salem, Oregon, which it claims can eventually produce up to 10,000 Digit units per year. With major players like Amazon and GXO Logistics also deploying their bots, Agility is positioning itself to be the go-to supplier for legged labor.
Why is this important?
While we’ve seen plenty of flashy demos of humanoids doing backflips, this is different. A commercial deployment by a manufacturing giant like Toyota, renowned for its legendary production system, is a massive vote of confidence. It signals that bipedal robots are finally graduating from R&D projects to practical, line-item-justified tools for tackling labor shortages and improving ergonomics on the factory floor. Instead of overhauling existing infrastructure, companies like Toyota can deploy humanoids directly into spaces designed for people, a key advantage over traditional automation. The age of the humanoid co-worker is quietly clocking in.
