Meta's Locate 3D Could Teach Your Robot to Fetch Your Keys

Imagine asking your Housebot to “bring me the keys from the table in the living room”—and it actually does it. Thanks to a groundbreaking project from the robotics team at Meta AI, that reality just got one step closer.

The new system, called Locate 3D, enables robots to interpret natural language commands and identify specific objects in complex 3D environments. This isn’t just about recognizing a table or keys—it’s about understanding spatial relationships, navigating through a home, and retrieving objects with real-world context in mind.

🔗 Interactive Demo: Try Locate 3D
💻 Open Source Code & Dataset: View on GitHub

Locate 3D uses a blend of cutting-edge vision-language models and 3D spatial mapping to create a shared understanding between language and physical space. That means you don’t have to train your robot with dozens of prompts or install QR codes around your home—just speak, and it learns what and where you mean.

Why It Matters
For home robotics, this is a massive leap. Most current systems either rely on pre-programmed object locations or struggle with ambiguity. Locate 3D opens the door for generalist robots to function more autonomously, adapting to changing home environments the same way humans do.

Meta’s open-sourcing of the model, code, and dataset also accelerates innovation for developers, startups, and researchers looking to build smarter domestic robots.

At HouseBots, we see Locate 3D as a major step toward more intuitive human-robot interaction—and a future where your home robot can finally handle the little things, like finding your keys... or maybe even your phone next.