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| PAL Robotics | |
|---|---|
| General information | |
| Industry | Robotics |
| Founded | 2004 |
| Headquarters | Barcelona, Spain |
| Founder(s) | Francesco Ferro and others |
| CEO | Francesco Ferro |
| Parent company | PAL Technology Group (Abu Dhabi, UAE) |
| Employees | ~148 (2025) |
| Products | Humanoid robots, mobile manipulators, autonomous mobile robots |
| Website | pal-robotics.com |
PAL Robotics is a Spanish robotics company headquartered in Barcelona that designs and manufactures humanoid robots, mobile manipulators, and autonomous service robots. Founded in 2004 by a small group of engineers led by Francesco Ferro, the company developed REEM-A, the first fully autonomous humanoid biped robot built in Europe, and has since produced a broad lineup of platforms spanning bipedal humanoids, wheeled service robots, mobile manipulators, social robots, and retail automation solutions. PAL Robotics is part of the PAL Technology Group based in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, and maintains offices in Barcelona, Toulouse (France), and Bari (Italy).[1][2]
As of late 2025, PAL Robotics employs approximately 148 people across five continents and serves customers in over 30 countries. The company has participated in more than 50 collaborative research projects with universities and research centers worldwide, including major European Union initiatives such as MEMMO, PRIMI, and euROBIN. PAL Robotics has maintained a non-militarization policy since its founding, publicly pledging not to weaponize its robots and supporting industry-wide calls against the weaponization of general-purpose robotic platforms.[3][4]
PAL Robotics was founded in 2004 in Barcelona, Spain, by a group of engineers with the goal of building the first humanoid robot in Europe. The project originated from a contract to create a robot capable of physically playing chess for a client in the United Arab Emirates. Francesco Ferro, who holds a BSc and MSc in Telecommunications Engineering from the Politecnico di Torino (Italy) and later earned an Executive MBA from the University of Barcelona in 2011, served as co-founder and has led the company as CEO since its inception.[1][5]
The team completed its first robot, REEM-A, in 2005. By 2006, REEM-A could walk autonomously, play chess using the Hydra chess engine, recognize faces and objects, and respond to voice commands. REEM-A became the first full-size autonomous humanoid biped robot built in Europe, a milestone that put the young Barcelona startup on the international robotics map.[6][7]
In 2007, REEM-A placed second in RoboCup soccer's Adult Size league, competing in one-on-one penalty kicks. That same year, the robot appeared at Wired NextFest in the United States, where it walked freely among visitors, a demonstration that distinguished it from more constrained humanoid presentations at the time.[7]
The company launched its second-generation humanoid, REEM-B, in 2008. Standing 1.5 meters tall and weighing 60 kg, REEM-B could recognize, grasp, and lift objects while navigating indoor environments autonomously using simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM). With a carrying capacity of 12 kg, it was the strongest bipedal humanoid robot at the time of its release. REEM-B featured stereo cameras, microphones, six-axis force sensors, accelerometers, gyroscopes, ultrasonic sensors, and laser range finders mounted on its feet for real-time environmental mapping.[8][9]
In 2009, PAL Robotics began integrating ROS (Robot Operating System) into its software stack, a decision that would shape the company's development philosophy for the next two decades. ROS integration made PAL's robots more accessible to the research community and established a foundation for open, standardized software development across all future platforms.[1]
The period from 2010 to 2015 marked PAL Robotics' transition from a pure humanoid research company into a diversified robotics manufacturer with commercial products.
In 2010, the company developed REEM-H1, its first robot intended as a commercial service platform. This led to the launch of the full REEM service robot in 2012. Unlike the bipedal REEM-A and REEM-B, the REEM service robot used a wheeled mobile base for stability and speed, standing 1.70 meters tall with 22 degrees of freedom and the ability to move at 4 km/h. REEM was designed for entertainment, reception, and public interaction applications, featuring autonomous navigation, person detection and recognition, speech synthesis and recognition, a touchscreen display, and a battery life of eight hours. The robot was hired out to companies and organizations for events and promotions, functioning as a receptionist, greeter, master of ceremonies, and visitor guide.[10][11]
In 2013, PAL Robotics introduced REEM-C, a full-size bipedal humanoid research platform that became one of the company's most influential products. Standing 165 cm tall and weighing 80 kg, REEM-C featured 44 degrees of freedom (with later versions upgraded to 68 DOF including articulated hands) and was built specifically to meet the needs of the academic community. Running on ROS with two Intel Core i7 processors, REEM-C supported research in walking, grasping, navigation, whole-body control, human-robot interaction, vision, and artificial intelligence. It became the first commercially available biped humanoid robot from PAL Robotics and was adopted by research institutions worldwide.[12][13]
The year 2014 saw PAL Robotics' first partnership on a European Union research project, "Factory in a Day," beginning what would become a sustained involvement in EU-funded collaborative research.[1]
2015 was a triple-milestone year for the company. PAL Robotics launched three products: TIAGo Base, an autonomous mobile robot for indoor logistics; StockBot, an RFID-based inventory management robot; and TIAGo, a mobile manipulator platform that would become the company's most widely deployed robot for research applications. TIAGo combined a differential drive base with an extendable torso and a 7-DOF arm, making it a versatile platform for perception, navigation, manipulation, and human-robot interaction research.[14][15]
In 2016, PAL Robotics reached financial self-sufficiency, funding its operations through product sales rather than depending on venture capital. This milestone reflected the growing commercial viability of the company's product portfolio.[3]
The year 2017 saw the release of TALOS, a high-performance bipedal humanoid designed for industrial research applications. Standing 175 cm tall and weighing 95 to 100 kg, TALOS featured 32 degrees of freedom with torque sensors in all actuated joints, an EtherCAT communication bus supporting control loops at up to 5 kHz, and a 6 kg payload capacity per arm. TALOS was conceived in collaboration with the Gepetto team at LAAS-CNRS in Toulouse to address limitations discovered in the Japanese HRP-2 platform. The first unit, named Pyrene, was delivered to LAAS-CNRS in February 2017. TALOS became a central platform in EU-funded research projects including MEMMO (Memory of Motion), which developed whole-body Model Predictive Control algorithms for humanoid robots. By 2020, at least six TALOS units were deployed at institutions including LAAS-CNRS, INRIA Nancy, the University of Edinburgh, and the University of Waterloo.[16][17]
In 2019, PAL Robotics expanded its product line with two new platforms: TIAGo++, an enhanced version of TIAGo with dual arms for bimanual manipulation tasks, and ARI, a social robot designed for human-robot interaction research and front-desk applications. ARI stands 1.65 meters tall with a differential-drive mobile base, a touchscreen on the torso, movable arms for gesturing, and a head with LCD eyes for expressive gazing behaviors. The robot features Intel i7 and NVIDIA Jetson TX2 processing, speech recognition supporting more than 20 languages, and all speech processing running on-board without cloud services.[18]
In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic prompted PAL Robotics to adapt its TIAGo Base platform for healthcare applications. TIAGo Delivery and TIAGo Conveyor robots were deployed at Hospital Municipal de Badalona and Hospital Clinic Barcelona to transport medication, samples, and food, reducing direct contact between healthcare workers and isolated patients. The solution, developed in just two months in partnership with Accerion for precision navigation, demonstrated the practical value of autonomous mobile robots in crisis scenarios.[19]
In 2021, PAL Robotics unveiled Kangaroo, a next-generation bipedal humanoid that represented a fundamental shift in the company's design philosophy. At 160 cm tall and weighing just 35 to 40 kg (less than half of TALOS), Kangaroo uses custom ball-screw linear actuators in a serial-parallel hybrid kinematic architecture rather than the conventional rotary actuators used in REEM-C and TALOS. All leg motors are positioned near the pelvis to minimize limb inertia, enabling highly dynamic motions including jumping and running. Kangaroo was made commercially available in 2024, with the first unit delivered to the Technical University of Vienna (TU Wien).[20][21]
In 2023, the company released TIAGo Base AI (with NVIDIA Jetson GPU integration) and TIAGo Pro, an advanced mobile manipulator with omnidirectional mecanum wheels, force-sensing series elastic actuator arms, and 360-degree LiDAR mapping. TIAGo Pro represents the latest evolution of PAL Robotics' most popular platform family.[22]
In 2024, PAL Robotics celebrated its 20th anniversary. The company also released an upgraded version of TALOS with ROS 2 support, higher payloads, and force-controlled manipulation capabilities targeted at European Horizon-funded projects in agile manufacturing.[3][23]
In 2025, PAL Robotics launched Kangaroo Pro, featuring a full dual-arm configuration that transforms the platform from a locomotion-focused research tool into a complete legged manipulator for dynamic tasks. The company demonstrated Kangaroo Pro at Automatica 2025 in Munich and at robotics conferences in Asia.[24]
PAL Robotics designs and manufactures all of its robots at its Barcelona headquarters. The product portfolio spans five categories: bipedal humanoids, wheeled humanoids, mobile manipulators, social robots, and retail/logistics solutions.
| Robot | Year | Type | Key specifications | Primary application |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| REEM-A | 2005 | Bipedal humanoid | First European full-size autonomous humanoid biped | Research, chess playing, demonstrations |
| REEM-B | 2008 | Bipedal humanoid | 150 cm, 60 kg, 12 kg carrying capacity, SLAM navigation | Research, object manipulation |
| REEM | 2012 | Wheeled humanoid | 170 cm, 22 DOF, wheeled base, 8-hour battery | Service, reception, entertainment |
| REEM-C | 2013 | Bipedal humanoid | 165 cm, 80 kg, 44+ DOF, ROS-based | Academic research, HRI, navigation |
| TIAGo Base | 2015 | Autonomous mobile robot | Differential drive, autonomous navigation | Indoor logistics, deliveries |
| StockBot | 2015 | Autonomous mobile robot | RFID scanning, 12-hour autonomy, 99.9% accuracy | Retail inventory management |
| TIAGo | 2015 | Mobile manipulator | 7-DOF arm, extendable torso, ROS | Research, healthcare, logistics |
| TALOS | 2017 | Bipedal humanoid | 175 cm, 95-100 kg, 32 DOF, torque control, 6 kg/arm | Industrial research, whole-body control |
| TIAGo++ | 2019 | Mobile manipulator | Dual 7-DOF arms, bimanual manipulation | Research, dual-arm tasks |
| ARI | 2019 | Social robot | 165 cm, LCD eyes, touchscreen, 20+ language support | HRI research, reception, front-desk |
| Kangaroo | 2021/2024 | Bipedal humanoid | 160 cm, 35-40 kg, linear actuators, jumping capability | Dynamic locomotion research |
| TIAGo Pro | 2023 | Mobile manipulator | Omnidirectional base, force-sensing arms, 360-degree LiDAR | Advanced research, industrial |
| Kangaroo Pro | 2025 | Bipedal humanoid | Full dual-arm configuration, legged manipulation | Dynamic loco-manipulation research |
PAL Robotics' bipedal humanoid line traces a direct evolution from REEM-A through REEM-B, REEM-C, TALOS, and Kangaroo. Each generation addressed specific limitations of its predecessor. REEM-C improved on the earlier REEM prototypes with a modular, commercially available research platform. TALOS introduced torque control and high-bandwidth actuation for force-sensitive industrial tasks. Kangaroo reimagined the mechanical architecture entirely, using linear actuators in closed kinematic chains to achieve dynamic locomotion at less than half the weight of TALOS.[16][20]
The TIAGo platform family is PAL Robotics' most commercially successful product line. Originally launched in 2015 as a single-arm mobile manipulator for research, TIAGo has expanded into multiple variants: TIAGo Base for autonomous logistics, TIAGo++ for dual-arm manipulation, TIAGo Base AI with GPU acceleration, and TIAGo Pro with omnidirectional mobility and force-sensing arms. The TIAGo family is widely used in academic research and has become a standard platform at RoboCup @Home competitions, where teams use TIAGo robots to compete in domestic service tasks. The platform supports ROS and ROS 2, and PAL Robotics provides comprehensive simulation environments through Gazebo.[14][22][25]
StockBot is an autonomous mobile robot designed specifically for retail inventory management. Equipped with RFID antennas and readers, StockBot navigates stores autonomously to detect product tags, generating complete inventory counts with location data. The robot achieves 99.9% accuracy and can operate for up to 12 hours on a single charge, performing automated inventory counts once or multiple times per day without human supervision. StockBot has been deployed at Decathlon stores across multiple countries and is available in two versions: StockBot RFID (for tag-based inventory) and StockBot Vision (for image-based inventory with location mapping). PAL Robotics has showcased StockBot at the National Retail Federation (NRF) trade show, reflecting growing demand for retail automation solutions.[15][26]
ARI is PAL Robotics' dedicated social robot, designed from the ground up for natural human-robot interaction. The robot's user-centered design prioritizes mobility, lightweight construction, safety, simplicity, and modern aesthetics to improve user acceptability of social robots. ARI features multi-modal perception including people detection and identification, speech and intent recognition, and expressive interactions through facial expressions, LED light effects, gazing behavior, and gestures. All speech processing runs entirely on-board, with no cloud-based services required. Researchers can program social interactions using ARI's touchscreen and extensive API.[18]
PAL Robotics forms part of the PAL Technology Group, headquartered in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. The PAL Technology Group is connected to the Royal Group, a diversified conglomerate based in Abu Dhabi comprising over 60 companies across real estate, hospitality, healthcare, and technology sectors. The relationship between PAL Robotics and its Abu Dhabi partners dates back to at least 2011, when a successful exhibition of the REEM robot at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Center (ADNEC) resulted in an order of 20 robots and plans to open a robot manufacturing factory in the emirate. The factory was planned with a production capacity of about a dozen robots per month.[27][28]
Under the PAL Technology Group structure, PAL Robotics continues to operate its primary research, development, and engineering functions from its Barcelona headquarters, with additional offices in Toulouse and Bari. The company employs approximately 148 people across five continents as of late 2025.[2][29]
Francesco Ferro has served as CEO of PAL Robotics since its founding in 2004. He received the "CEO of the Year" award for his leadership in advancing robotics safety and functionality, including the pioneering use of torque control in bipedal robots. Ferro also holds positions as Industry Director at euRobotics, Board Director, and Chair of the International Federation of Robotics (IFR) Service Robot Group.[5][30]
PAL Robotics has participated in more than 50 collaborative research projects, with a particularly deep involvement in European Union-funded initiatives. The company's first EU project partnership was "Factory in a Day" in 2014, and it has since become one of the most active robotics companies in EU research programs.[1][3]
Key EU projects involving PAL Robotics include:
| Project | Funding program | Period | Focus | PAL Robotics role |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Factory in a Day | EU | 2014+ | Rapid factory setup | First EU project partnership |
| MEMMO (Memory of Motion) | Horizon 2020 | 2018-2022 | Motion generation for legged robots | TALOS as primary experimental platform |
| SOCRATES | Marie Sklodowska-Curie | Various | Social cognitive robotic agents for eldercare | Non-academic partner, PhD training |
| euROBIN | Horizon Europe | 2022+ | Network of excellence for AI-driven robotics | One of 31 partners across 14 countries |
| PRIMI | Horizon Europe | 2023-2027 | Neuromorphic robotics, stroke rehabilitation | Kangaroo as central platform |
| PILLAR-Robots | Horizon Europe | Various | Long-lived adaptive robots | TIAGo as use-case platform |
The MEMMO project was particularly significant for PAL Robotics. Funded by Horizon 2020, MEMMO aimed to develop a unified approach to motion generation for robots with arms and legs by building a "memory of motion" from pre-computed optimal trajectories. TALOS served as one of the primary experimental platforms, and the project produced the first whole-body Model Predictive Control algorithm with full state feedback for a humanoid of TALOS's size.[17][31]
The PRIMI project (2023 to 2027) represents PAL Robotics' latest major EU involvement. Kangaroo serves as the central robotic platform in PRIMI, which aims to integrate neuromorphic technologies (event-based cameras, SpiNNaker2-based sensorimotor boards, tactile sensors) into robotic systems for higher-order cognitive capabilities. The project plans clinical pilot studies in robot-assisted stroke rehabilitation.[32]
euROBIN, launched in 2022 with 12.5 million euros in EU and Swiss funding, is a network of 31 partners across 14 countries focused on transferring software and models between robots and research groups. PAL Robotics participates as a key industry partner, providing robotic platforms for the network's focus areas: robots in manufacturing, robots in outdoor applications, and robots as personal assistance systems.[33]
PAL Robotics' robots have been deployed at research institutions across Europe, North America, Asia, and beyond. Key academic partners include:
TIAGo is used at dozens of universities worldwide for RoboCup @Home competitions and domestic service robotics research. In RoboCup 2023, TIAGo-based teams achieved notable results, reinforcing the platform's position as a standard research tool.[25]
PAL Robotics has been a committed contributor to the Robot Operating System ecosystem since adopting ROS in 2009. The company develops and maintains the ros_control and ros2_control frameworks, which provide hardware abstraction layers used not only by PAL's own robots but by robotics platforms from other manufacturers as well. PAL Robotics publishes robot description files (URDF models), simulation configurations, and integration packages for its platforms on GitHub under open-source licenses. The company's PAL OS platform provides documentation, simulation models, and development tools for researchers working with any PAL robot.[37][38]
PAL Robotics has maintained a non-militarization stance since its founding in 2004. The company does not support the weaponization of its robots and has publicly signed on to the open letter "General purpose robots should not be weaponized," alongside companies such as Boston Dynamics, Agility Robotics, ANYbotics, Clearpath Robotics, Open Robotics, and Unitree. PAL Robotics has stated that adding weapons to robots that are remotely or autonomously operated raises serious ethical issues and that weaponized applications would harm public trust in robotics technology. The company has called on policymakers to promote safe use of robots and prohibit their misuse, and has urged every organization in the robotics community to make similar pledges.[4]
CEO Francesco Ferro has emphasized a human-centric philosophy, stating: "Technology should always serve people. Our goal is to create robots that work with people, adapting to our habits and responding smartly to dynamic environments."[3]
PAL Robotics occupies a distinctive position in the global robotics landscape as one of the few European companies with a full lineup of humanoid and service robots. In a market increasingly dominated by American companies (Boston Dynamics, Tesla, Figure AI, Agility Robotics) and Chinese manufacturers (Unitree, UBTECH, Fourier Intelligence), PAL Robotics represents the European robotics tradition, with deep ties to the EU research ecosystem and a focus on open-source software and academic collaboration.
The company competes across multiple segments. In the humanoid research market, TALOS and Kangaroo compete with platforms such as the iCub from the Italian Institute of Technology, HRP series robots from Kawada/AIST, and increasingly with lower-cost Chinese humanoids. In the mobile manipulator space, TIAGo competes with platforms from Fetch Robotics (now part of Zebra Technologies), Toyota's Human Support Robot, and various other research platforms. In retail automation, StockBot competes with inventory robots from companies like Simbe Robotics (Tally) and Zebra Technologies.[3]
PAL Robotics' strategy of serving the research market rather than pursuing direct large-scale industrial deployment differentiates it from many of the newer, heavily funded humanoid robotics companies. The company's financial self-sufficiency since 2016, achieved through product sales rather than venture capital, provides stability in a sector where many competitors depend on continued fundraising.[3]
| Year | Milestone |
|---|---|
| 2004 | Company founded in Barcelona by Francesco Ferro and team |
| 2005 | REEM-A completed (first PAL robot) |
| 2006 | REEM-A walks, plays chess, recognizes faces and voices |
| 2007 | REEM-A places second at RoboCup Adult Size league; appears at Wired NextFest |
| 2008 | REEM-B launched (60 kg, 12 kg carrying capacity, strongest biped at the time) |
| 2009 | ROS integration begins across PAL's software stack |
| 2010 | REEM-H1 development (first service platform robot) |
| 2011 | REEM exhibited at ADNEC Abu Dhabi; 20-unit order received |
| 2012 | REEM service robot launched for entertainment and public interaction |
| 2013 | REEM-C introduced as bipedal humanoid research platform |
| 2014 | First EU project partnership (Factory in a Day) |
| 2015 | TIAGo, TIAGo Base, and StockBot launched |
| 2016 | Company reaches financial self-sufficiency through product sales |
| 2017 | TALOS released; first unit (Pyrene) delivered to LAAS-CNRS |
| 2019 | TIAGo++ (dual-arm) and ARI (social robot) launched |
| 2020 | TIAGo robots deployed in Barcelona hospitals during COVID-19 pandemic |
| 2021 | Kangaroo prototype unveiled for dynamic locomotion research |
| 2023 | TIAGo Base AI and TIAGo Pro released |
| 2024 | 20th anniversary; first commercial Kangaroo delivered to TU Wien; TALOS upgraded to ROS 2 |
| 2025 | Kangaroo Pro with dual arms launched; demonstrated at Automatica 2025 |