_Incident · Property damage_

# Figure 02 alleged to have gashed a steel door in a malfunction (whistleblower lawsuit)

Canonical ID: `90c61ecd-2b8e-4670-8833-982bdeb2ff15`

- **Occurred:** 2025-11-21
- **Kind:** `property_damage`
- **Status (derived):** active
- **Model:** [Figure 02](/models/figure-02.md) (id: `f5599108-6c06-4af4-a669-378b87860daf`)

A wrongful-termination complaint filed Nov 21 2025 by former Figure principal safety engineer Robert Gruendel alleges that a Figure 02 (F.02) malfunctioned and carved a roughly quarter-inch-deep gash into a steel appliance door, and that internal impact testing produced forces more than twice a human-skull-fracture threshold, with a person standing nearby. VERIFIED-VS-CLAIMED: the lawsuit's existence and filed allegations are verified by tier-1 outlets (CNBC), but the malfunction itself is an UNPROVEN ALLEGATION in active litigation; Figure denies the claims and says Gruendel was terminated for performance. Recorded as a litigation-sourced allegation, not established fact. Cap-flag: incident date not disclosed (the Nov 21 2025 anchor is the lawsuit filing date; safety-testing referenced ~Jul-Sep 2025).

## Sources (2)

1. **CNBC** · https://www.cnbc.com/2025/11/21/figure-ai-sued.html
2. **Futurism** · https://futurism.com/robots-and-machines/whistleblower-fired-warning-robot-crush-skull

## Common questions

### What happened in Figure 02 alleged to have gashed a steel door in a malfunction (whistleblower lawsuit)?

A wrongful-termination complaint filed Nov 21 2025 by former Figure principal safety engineer Robert Gruendel alleges that a Figure 02 (F.02) malfunctioned and carved a roughly quarter-inch-deep gash into a steel appliance door, and that internal impact testing produced forces more than twice a human-skull-fracture threshold, with a person standing nearby. VERIFIED-VS-CLAIMED: the lawsuit's existence and filed allegations are verified by tier-1 outlets (CNBC), but the malfunction itself is an UNPROVEN ALLEGATION in active litigation; Figure denies the claims and says Gruendel was terminated for performance. Recorded as a litigation-sourced allegation, not established fact. Cap-flag: incident date not disclosed (the Nov 21 2025 anchor is the lawsuit filing date; safety-testing referenced ~Jul-Sep 2025).

### When did this incident occur?

The incident is recorded as occurring on November 21, 2025 on the DEPLOY registry. The date reflects the underlying real-world event, not the registry record's creation date.

### What robot was involved in Figure 02 alleged to have gashed a steel door in a malfunction (whistleblower lawsuit)?

Figure 02 is the recorded robot involved in this incident.

### Has anyone responded to Figure 02 alleged to have gashed a steel door in a malfunction (whistleblower lawsuit)?

No responses to this incident are recorded on the DEPLOY registry. Operators, manufacturers, or affected parties can submit responses to the editorial team; absence is not a guarantee no response was issued.

### What is the current status of Figure 02 alleged to have gashed a steel door in a malfunction (whistleblower lawsuit)?

This incident is an active record on the DEPLOY registry; no retraction or correction has been issued.


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