Astribot
Astribot is the robotics brand of Shenzhen based Stardust Intelligence, maker of the S1, a dual arm humanoid on an omnidirectional wheeled base whose cable driven arms reach end effector speeds of 10 metres per second with positioning repeatability of ±0.1 millimetres and 10 kilogramme per arm payloads, learning tasks by imitation through VR teleoperation, famous for the viral demonstrations, calligraphy, pancake flipping, wine pouring, that introduced its speed to the world.
Astribot
In April 2024 a robot video went viral for the rarest of reasons: viewers assumed it was faked, and it was not. Astribot, the robotics brand of Shenzhen based Stardust Intelligence, earned that disbelief with the S1, a dual arm humanoid whose cable driven limbs reach end effector speeds of 10 metres per second, faster than a human hand, with accelerations around 100 metres per second squared, while placing objects to a repeatability of ±0.1 millimetres. The demonstration reel, calligraphy brushwork, pancakes flipped mid air, wine poured, a cucumber shaved, cups stacked at competition pace, was not a stunt catalogue but a thesis: that manipulation, not walking, is where humanoid robotics earns its keep, and that speed and delicacy can share one arm.
The company behind the brand carries its ambition in its name, drawn from the Latin ad astra per aspera, through hardship to the stars. Stardust Intelligence was founded in December 2022 by CEO Lai Jie, whose career runs through Tencent's robotics laboratory, Baidu and Hong Kong Polytechnic University, and the S1 travelled from viral clip to product at startup pace: an official debut at the 2024 World Robot Conference in Beijing that August, a landmark autonomous coffee making collaboration with Physical Intelligence's π0 foundation model in November 2024, and limited commercial availability from late 2025, the fast robot arriving fast.
Within the wider humanoid, upper body and wheeled humanoid categories, the Astribot range for sale can be explored through this page.
Background
A bet on hands over feet
Astribot's founding architecture is a position statement: the S1 is an upper body humanoid, dual 7 degree of freedom arms on an omnidirectional wheeled base, spending nothing on bipedal balance and everything on manipulation performance. The choice buys the numbers no walking humanoid matches, the 10 metre per second reach, the tenth of a millimetre repeatability, the 10 kilogramme per arm payloads, and suits the environments the company targets, kitchens, laboratories, service counters and workcells, where floors are flat and the work is in the hands.
Taught, not programmed
The S1's second thesis is how it learns: imitation. Through a VR based teleoperation interface, a human demonstrates a task once, folding, pouring, assembling, and the robot studies and reproduces the behaviour autonomously, skills acquired at demonstration speed rather than engineering speed. The November 2024 π0 collaboration extended the idea to language: given a high level instruction like make coffee, the S1 decomposed it into steps, water, grounds, buttons, locating mugs and machines even when misplaced, vision language action intelligence riding hardware fast enough to act on it.
The Astribot S1
The S1 is the brand's flagship and its argument in metal. Its cable driven arm architecture, drive forces routed through tendons rather than heavy joint mounted motors, keeps limb inertia low, which is the secret of the speed and the safety alike: 10 metres per second at the end effector with human surpassing acceleration, force controlled actuators graduating from delicate, shaving a cucumber's skin, writing brush calligraphy, to strong, 10 kilogrammes per arm, and compliant contact behaviour throughout. Multimodal perception, LiDAR and depth vision class sensing with real time obstacle awareness, carries autonomous navigation on the omnidirectional base, and the software ecosystem opens the platform wide: the Astribot Suite framework, visual and zero code programming, VR teleoperation for skill capture and remote operation, and full APIs for research integration, with configurations confirmed at quotation.
S1 Overview
| Attribute | Astribot S1 |
|---|---|
| Architecture | Dual arm upper body humanoid, omnidirectional wheeled base |
| Arms | 7 DOF per arm, cable driven, force controlled |
| End effector speed | ≥10 m/s, ~100 m/s² acceleration |
| Payload | 10 kg per arm |
| Repeatability | ±0.1 mm |
| Learning | Imitation via VR teleoperation; vision language action integration (π0 collaboration) |
| Perception | Multimodal: LiDAR and depth class vision, obstacle awareness |
| Software | Astribot Suite, visual and zero code programming, full API |
| Milestones | Viral debut Apr 2024; World Robot Conference Aug 2024; π0 coffee demo Nov 2024; commercial availability from late 2025 |
Figures follow published specifications; configurations are confirmed at quotation.
Which buyers does Astribot suit?
The S1 sells where manipulation is the mission. Research institutions take it as the manipulation platform of record, the Astribot Suite, teleoperation interface and APIs built for exactly that constituency across research robotics. Enterprises piloting embodied AI in food service, hospitality and commercial settings take the machine whose demonstrations are literally kitchen work, with hotel and venue programmes close behind. Manufacturers with repetitive precision tasks take the ±0.1 millimetre repeatability at speeds fixed automation envies across industrial workcells. And demonstration led buyers, showrooms, academies, exhibition programmes, take the robot audiences already know from the video, with mission software, RoboChef and RoboPick class systems from the robot software catalogue, completing deployments. Indoor, flat floor environments are its habitat; stairs and outdoor terrain are not its brief.
Technology
Cable drive: the physics of the headline
The S1's speed is an architecture, not a tune: cable driven transmission locates motor mass in the body rather than the limbs, collapsing arm inertia so the same hardware accelerates violently and stops delicately, with the low moving mass doubling as a safety property, less energy in any unintended contact, force control graduating the grip from calligraphy brush to full payload.
Imitation as the interface
Skill acquisition runs at human demonstration speed: an operator performs a task through VR teleoperation, the S1 learns the behaviour and replays it autonomously, and the library grows the way training a colleague grows it, task by shown task, with visual and zero code tools putting authorship in operators' hands rather than engineers' backlogs.
Language to action
The π0 foundation model collaboration demonstrated the stack's upper floor: high level natural language instructions decomposed into grounded action sequences, objects recognised and located even out of place, general knowledge from multi robot training data expressed through the S1's uncommon hardware envelope, an early public proof of vision language action models doing real kitchen work.
A platform that stays open
Astribot ships the S1 as infrastructure: the Astribot Suite framework, teleoperation for both training and remote assistance, and full APIs, keeping the research community, integrators and adventurous operators building on the same machine, the openness that turns a viral robot into a durable platform.
What are Astribot robots used for?
- Manipulation research: imitation learning, dexterous control and vision language action studies across research robotics, on the category's fastest arms.
- Food service and hospitality pilots: preparation, serving and counter tasks across commercial and hotel environments.
- Precision repetitive work: ±0.1 millimetre placement at speed across industrial workcells and laboratory automation.
- Demonstration and engagement: the famous repertoire, calligraphy to cup stacking, across exhibition robotics and showrooms.
- Teleoperated assistance: VR piloted remote work and skill data collection through the platform's native interface.
- Advanced domestic assistance development: the household task suite, cooking, folding, tidying, that defined the brand's public debut.
Pricing and Availability
Astribot robots are available for purchase across Europe and worldwide, from single S1 research units to commercial pilot deployments, alongside the wider humanoid catalogue on Robots Europa. Astribot price and cost vary by configuration, software packages and deployment support, so buyers seeking the S1 for sale should request a current quotation for their requirements, with European delivery, customs clearance and support arranged through Robots Europa. Purchasing enquiries, specification sheets and availability details for those looking to buy Astribot robots can be found on this page.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Astribot?
Astribot is the robotics brand of Stardust Intelligence, a Shenzhen company founded in December 2022 by CEO Lai Jie, maker of the S1 dual arm humanoid, the machine whose 10 metre per second arms and viral 2024 demonstrations made it one of the most recognised manipulation platforms in robotics.
How does the Astribot S1 work?
It manipulates through dual 7 degree of freedom, cable driven, force controlled arms reaching 10 metres per second with ±0.1 millimetre repeatability and 10 kilogramme payloads, moves on an omnidirectional wheeled base with multimodal perception, learns tasks by imitation through VR teleoperation and executes natural language instructions through vision language action integration.
Why is the Astribot S1 famous?
For a demonstration video in April 2024 so fast and precise that audiences doubted it was real: calligraphy, mid air pancake flips, wine pouring, cucumber shaving and competition pace cup stacking, followed by its World Robot Conference debut and a landmark autonomous coffee making demonstration on Physical Intelligence's π0 model.
What are the benefits of the Astribot S1?
Key benefits include the fastest published arm performance in its class paired with tenth of a millimetre precision, safe low inertia cable drive, task teaching at human demonstration speed without programming, an open framework with zero code tools and full APIs and a wheeled architecture whose stability suits precision work.
Can the Astribot S1 learn new tasks without programming?
Yes, that is its native interface: a human demonstrates the task once through VR teleoperation and the S1 studies and reproduces the behaviour autonomously, with visual and zero code tools for refinement, so operational teams grow the robot's repertoire the way they would train a new colleague.
Is the Astribot S1 a walking robot?
No, deliberately: it is an upper body humanoid on an omnidirectional wheeled base, an architecture that trades stairs for the manipulation performance, stability and endurance its indoor missions reward, placing it in the wheeled and upper body tiers of the humanoid market.
Where can I buy Astribot robots and what do they cost?
Astribot robots are for sale through Robots Europa, serving the United Kingdom, the European Union and markets worldwide with delivery, customs clearance and support. Because cost varies by configuration and deployment, buyers should request a tailored quotation. Full purchasing details are available on this page.
Summary
Astribot is the manipulation argument made unanswerable: put the motors in the body, the speed in the tendons and the learning in imitation, and a robot emerges that writes calligraphy at one moment and moves ten kilogrammes at ten metres per second the next, taught its trade by watching rather than by code. From disbelieved viral clip to World Robot Conference debut to foundation model coffee service to commercial availability inside two years, the S1 has kept the pace its arms promised, and its open framework keeps researchers and operators building on it. As the speed and dexterity specialist of the humanoid era, Astribot stands per aspera ad astra among its peers, and this page as the European starting point for reaching it.
v3, August 9, 2026