Cloak: Zero-Shot Cross-Embodiment Manipulation by Masking the End-Effector from the VLA
On the map: Vision-language-action models → Human-video and latent-action pretraining
Abstract (arXiv)
We present Cloak, a training recipe that endows a Vision-Language-Action (VLA) model with zero-shot cross-embodiment transfer by cloaking the end-effector from its own wrist camera. The end-effector occupies a large and consistent region of the wrist view and masking it allows for embodiment-agnostic visual reasoning. Cloak renders a mask in simulation from the robot's known geometry, accurately and in real time, with no segmentation or generative models. During training, we augment the mask so the model generalizes to embodiments unseen at training time. We demonstrate the recipe with Cloak-VLA, a VLA trained with Cloak on a single parallel-jaw gripper dataset. No data of new embodiments is ever collected. Cloak-VLA transfers zero-shot to various unseen embodiments, including another gripper, another arm, and a five-fingered hand, while preserving the source embodiment's performance. By decoupling the wrist view from its own embodiment, Cloak allows data to outlive the hardware it was collected on.
Key facts. Cited by 5 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026). Placed in Human-video and latent-action pretraining, one of 13 directions in Vision-language-action models. Builds on 31 of its 37 references that are in the map. First posted on arXiv 22 Jun 2026.
Builds on
31 of 37 references.
References · 31
- 2024OpenVLA: An Open-Source Vision-Language-Action Modelcited by 2,887
- 2024π0: A Vision-Language-Action Flow Model for General Robot Controlcited by 2,407
- 2025π0.5: a Vision-Language-Action Model with Open-World Generalizationcited by 1,761
- 2024Octo: An Open-Source Generalist Robot Policycited by 1,484
- 2025GR00T N1: An Open Foundation Model for Generalist Humanoid Robotscited by 1,225
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- 2024Universal Manipulation Interface: In-The-Wild Robot Teaching Without In-The-Wild Robotscited by 394
- 2025X-VLA: Soft-Prompted Transformer as Scalable Cross-Embodiment Vision-Language-Action Modelcited by 303
- 2024EgoMimic: Scaling Imitation Learning via Egocentric Videocited by 175
- 2022Human-to-Robot Imitation in the Wildcited by 161
- 2023AnyTeleop: A General Vision-Based Dexterous Robot Arm-Hand Teleoperation Systemcited by 152
- 2024Scaling Proprioceptive-Visual Learning with Heterogeneous Pre-trained Transformerscited by 148
19 more
- 2019DexPilot: Vision Based Teleoperation of Dexterous Robotic Hand-Arm Systemcited by 114
- 2024Scaling Cross-Embodied Learning: One Policy for Manipulation, Navigation, Locomotion and Aviationcited by 114
- 2025Phantom: Training Robots Without Robots Using Only Human Videoscited by 70
- 2025DexUMI: Using Human Hand as the Universal Manipulation Interface for Dexterous Manipulationcited by 66
- 2024RoVi-Aug: Robot and Viewpoint Augmentation for Cross-Embodiment Robot Learningcited by 46
- 2025Masquerade: Learning from In-the-wild Human Videos using Data-Editingcited by 43
- 2025RoboEngine: Plug-and-Play Robot Data Augmentation with Semantic Robot Segmentation and Background Generationcited by 40
- 2024Mirage: Cross-Embodiment Zero-Shot Policy Transfer with Cross-Paintingcited by 36
- 2026RDT2: Exploring the Scaling Limit of UMI Data Towards Zero-Shot Cross-Embodiment Generalizationcited by 30
- 2025X-Sim: Cross-Embodiment Learning via Real-to-Sim-to-Realcited by 28
- 2024Cross-Embodiment Dexterous Grasping with Reinforcement Learningcited by 27
- 2025H2R: A Human-to-Robot Data Augmentation for Robot Pre-training from Videoscited by 23
- 2025Latent Action Diffusion for Cross-Embodiment Manipulationcited by 20
- 2025OXE-AugE: A Large-Scale Robot Augmentation of OXE for Scaling Cross-Embodiment Policy Learningcited by 10
- 2025Augmented Reality for RObots (ARRO): Pointing Visuomotor Policies Towards Visual Robustnesscited by 8
- 2026One Hand to Rule Them All: Canonical Representations for Unified Dexterous Manipulationcited by 8
- 2026One-Policy-Fits-All: Geometry-Aware Action Latents for Cross-Embodiment Manipulationcited by 5
- 2025EmbodiSwap for Zero-Shot Robot Imitation Learningcited by 2
- 2026DexFormer: Cross-Embodied Dexterous Manipulation via History-Conditioned Transformercited by 1
Built on by
Citing papers per year: 2026: 5.
5 papers.
- 2026ZETA: A Controlled Study of Zero-Shot Cross-Embodiment VLA Transfer for Tabletop Manipulationcited by 0
- 2026Intelligence Across Embodimentscited by 0
- 2026CrossSafe: Towards Cross-Embodiment Latent Safety Filterscited by 0
- 2026FoveaVLA: Foveation Actions Replace the Wrist Camera in VLAscited by 0
- 2026Human Demonstrations as Post-Training Data for Any Robot Body: Retargeting the Object, Not the Handcited by 0
- 2026Human Demonstrations as Post-Training Data for Any Robot Body: Retargeting the Object, Not the Hand14 Oct 2026
- 2026FoveaVLA: Foveation Actions Replace the Wrist Camera in VLAs14 Oct 2026
- 2026CrossSafe: Towards Cross-Embodiment Latent Safety Filters24 Sep 2026
- 2026Intelligence Across Embodiments22 Sep 2026
- 2026ZETA: A Controlled Study of Zero-Shot Cross-Embodiment VLA Transfer for Tabletop Manipulation2 Sep 2026
Similar, not cited
Close in wording, no citation either way
- 2026LAP: Language-Action Pre-Training Enables Zero-shot Cross-Embodiment Transfer
- 2026XEWorld: Can Action-Conditioned World Models Generalize to Unseen Robot Embodiments?
- 2026Cross-Hand Latent Representation for Vision-Language-Action Models
- 2026CLAP: Cross-Embodiment Video World Models are Zero-Shot Physical Simulators
- 2025Tenma: Robust Cross-Embodiment Robot Manipulation with Diffusion Transformer
- 2025Toward Embodiment Equivariant Vision-Language-Action Policy
- 2026SkelWAM: A Skeleton-Guided World-Action Model for Zero-Shot Cross-Embodiment Manipulation
- 2026SeeTraceAct: Visibility-Aware Latent Planning from Cross-Embodiment Demonstration Videos