HReachy Mini Hermes

AN EXTENSIBLE REACHY MINI COMPANION

Control locally.
Add an agent.

Start with visible privacy states, guarded movement, camera controls, announcements and a local browser UI. Add Hermes Agent for voice, memory, skills and progressively gated tools. Hermes is central to the advanced experience—not required to understand the app.

View source on GitHub ↗ Read the Pi setup guide ↗
Early alpha reference-tested Local first before cloud paths Apache-2.0 open source
An actual Reachy Mini on a desk raising its antennas in an official Pollen Robotics demonstration.
Actual Reachy Mini · official Pollen Robotics source, converted to a metadata-free static WebP under Apache-2.0.

01 / CONNECT

Bring Reachy and an app host

Use Wireless, a Lite connected to a normal computer, or Tim's community Lite + Pi 4 reference pattern. The Pi pattern is not an official Wireless conversion.

02 / CHECK SAFETY

Start folded and local

Confirm Standby and released torque, wake with clear space, try one bounded look, press Stop, then verify safe fold before enabling camera or voice.

03 / EXPAND

Connect Hermes when wanted

The authenticated private bridge adds speech providers, interruptible conversation, memory, Kids experiences and gated agent tools while provider keys stay off Reachy.

VERIFIED VS GATED

Choose only what you need.

✅ means reference-tested. ◐ means implemented but still requires per-install or final hardware acceptance. Experimental features are not presented as production-ready.

CapabilityReachy + appLite + Pi 4HermesBoundary
Local dashboard, privacy and guarded movement✅✅OptionalPhysical acceptance still required
Local live camera✅✅OptionalExplicit opt-in; trusted UI only
Voice, announcements and one-frame model vision——◐Private bridge + configured providers
Supervised Kids Mode and personal agent tools——◐Adult supervision; progressively gated
Sony Bluetooth controller——OptionalWireless only; final hardware acceptance pending

TRUST BOUNDARIES

Local controls first.
Private bridge second.

The app host owns local wake, safety, privacy, movement and camera controls. The optional Hermes host keeps identity, memory, tools and provider credentials. Dashed paths cross into private or external systems.

Reachy Mini connects locally to the companion app; an optional authenticated bridge connects to Hermes Agent, which may contact external providers across a separate trust boundary.
Camera live view stays local. One frame may leave only after explicit opt-in and a visual request. Provider credentials remain on the Hermes host.

Text summary: Reachy hardware connects to the local companion app, which owns safety, privacy, movement, wake, camera and UI controls. An optional authenticated LAN or VPN bridge connects the app to a private Hermes host. Only enabled capabilities cross from Hermes to external model, speech or approved tool providers.

PHYSICAL STATES

Privacy you can see.

ModeMicrophoneWake wordFace trackingMotor torque
StandbyLocal onlyActivePost-wake onlyReleased
AwakeRunningActiveOptional post-wakeEnabled
MeetingStoppedDisabledDisabledReleased
SleepStoppedDisabledDisabledReleased

Face tracking and wake-direction sensing stay local to Reachy. Explicit voice commands can select Standby, Awake, timed Meeting, or Sleep. Meeting and Sleep stop microphone capture and tracking, cancel physical actions, clear playback, and disable wake detection. Before any transition releases motor torque, Reachy checks its pose and folds the head gently when needed. Sleep requires the settings UI or a physical control to wake again.

HARDWARE, SAFETY, PRIVACY

See what the setup means.

Official Reachy Mini imagery explains the real hardware. The project-authored Pi diagram shows the conservative community topology—not a final attached mount and not Wireless equivalence.

Conservative Reachy Mini Lite and Raspberry Pi 4 companion topology with separate power supplies, USB data, ventilation, strain relief and motor-clearance callouts.
Community Lite + Pi 4 topology. Start off-robot with two supplies; mounted placement and shared power remain unapproved.

Text summary: Keep the Pi off-robot on a ventilated, non-conductive surface. Power Reachy and the Pi from separate approved supplies, connect USB for data only, secure cable strain relief to a stationary support, and keep every cable, mount and device outside Reachy's movement zone. Shared power and robot-mounted placement are not approved.

Official exploded component comparison of Reachy Mini Lite and Reachy Mini Wireless.
Lite and Wireless are different products. This official component view is why the guide makes no conversion-equivalence claim.
Reachy Mini Hermes dashboard showing sanitized Standby, folded and torque-released demo status with power and privacy controls.
Start folded and local. Real project UI with sanitized demo status; this capture is not a claim of a live robot connection.
Reachy Mini Hermes Robot tab showing sanitized folded motor status, guarded wake, fold and Stop controls.
Stop stays visible. Real project UI with sanitized demo status; motor controls remain guarded by physical acceptance.
Official diagram identifying Reachy Mini's camera and microphone locations.
Visible privacy boundaries. Camera is opt-in; Meeting and Sleep stop app-controlled microphone capture.
Image credits and license notes ↗ Optional owned-photo shot list ↗

OPEN SOURCE · EARLY ALPHA

Start with the right guide.

Baseline local evaluation needs Reachy Mini SDK 1.9+, Python 3.11+, supported Reachy hardware and a trusted local network. Hermes and provider access are required only for the connected voice, Kids, vision and agent paths.

Read the app installation guide ↗ Read the Lite + Pi 4 guide ↗ Read operations and troubleshooting ↗ Read the security model ↗ 
$ git clone https://github.com/Timverhoogt/reachy-mini-hermes
$ cd reachy-mini-hermes
$ uv build --wheel
$ uv pip install --reinstall dist/reachy_mini_hermes-*.whl

# Then open Reachy’s app settings and say any local wake phrase:
“Hey Hermes” · “Okay Nabu” · “Hey Reachy”