What Circus Group does

Circus Group (legal entity Circus SE, Xetra: CA1) is a Munich-headquartered AI-robotics company founded in 2021 that builds autonomous meal-production and sustainment systems for commercial food service, retail, automotive, education, and defense customers. Its core products are the CA-1 — described as the world's first fully autonomous AI-robotic system for industrial-scale meal production, occupying roughly seven square meters and producing over 500 dishes per ingredient load — and the CA-M, a defense-focused autonomous sustainment system deployed with the German Armed Forces, Lithuanian Armed Forces, and Ukrainian Ground Forces. The company is led by founder/CEO Nikolas Bullwinkel (co-founder of Flink) alongside Co-CEO Claus Holst-Gydesen, CFO Fabian Becker, CCO Frank Holtey, and General Counsel Sasha Borovik (former Microsoft and Helsing legal lead).

Name

Circus Group

Legal name

Circus SE

Website

https://circus-group.com

Company type

Public

Founded year

2021

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Circus Group is a Munich-based AI robotics company that builds autonomous meal-production robots (CA-1, CA-M) and an AI-native operating system (CircusOS) for commercial food service, retail, automotive, and defense customers across Europe and the U.S.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Autonomous Meal Production Robotics

NAICS

Sporting and Athletic Goods Manufacturing (33992), Amusement Parks and Arcades (7131)

SIC

Games, Toys & Children's Vehicles (No Dolls & Bicycles) (3944), Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Game Controllers, Joysticks & Flight/Driving Sim Controls (HDACAFAC)

Keywords

• Autonomous meal robotics
• Food service automation
• AI robotics platform
• Defense sustainment systems
• Industrial kitchen automation

Headquarters

HQ city

Hamburg

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. CA-1 Robot Hardware Sales: One-time sale of CA-1 autonomous meal production robots to enterprise customers (REWE, Meta Munich, Mercedes-Benz Gastronomie, HEM). Production is industrialized with Celestica with manufacturing cycle time reduced from 8 to ~4 weeks, targeting 1,000 units/year capacity at the current facility and a serial rate of 64 units/month planned for Q4. The long-term target reaches up to 6,000 units/year.
2. Sale-and-Leaseback / Asset-Backed Financing of Robot Fleet: Circus has implemented sale-and-leaseback structures with leading financial partners (including FINEXITY AG) and placed its first asset-backed bond (seven-digit EUR) backed by six autonomous meal-prep robots at €265,000 each, with a framework agreement for up to €50 million of additional capital-markets financing. Leasing structures accelerate sales cycles by up to 70%.
3. Recurring Software, AI & Supply-Chain Integration Revenue: Recurring revenue stream from CircusOS software, the FullyAI / Circus Intelligence AI layer, and supply-chain integration services. Earnings are expected to gradually improve as recurring software revenue share grows.
4. CA-M Defense Robotics & Sustainment Systems: Defense-segment revenue from CA-M autonomous supply systems sold or deployed with the German Armed Forces, Lithuanian Armed Forces and Ukrainian Ground Forces. Demand is growing faster than anticipated and is expected to contribute a fast-growing share of revenue in 2026 and beyond, supported by a new factory planned for 2026 targeting more than 10,000 robots per year.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion4 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Circus Group designs, manufactures and sells the CA-1 Series 4 fully autonomous AI-robotic meal production system and the defense-focused CA-M autonomous sustainment system, sold or leased to enterprise customers in retail, automotive canteens, fuel stations, food-service franchises, universities and national armed forces. Revenue is generated through robot hardware sales, recurring CircusOS software and FullyAI intelligence subscriptions, and asset-backed sale-and-leaseback financing structures.

Product overview

Circus Group is a single-vendor deep-tech AI-robotics platform organized as a flagship robotic product (CA-1, including the latest Series 4 generation) plus a modular intelligence and operating layer. The CA-1 autonomous AI robot is the customer-facing hardware, paired with CircusOS — the AI-native operating system that handles demand planning, predictive diagnostics, real-time analytics, and fleet management across the deployed network. CircusOS is in turn extended by FullyAI, the acquired Agentic AI intelligence layer that adds AI-agent-driven human-AI interaction. The portfolio also includes CA-M, the defense-focused variant of the autonomous robot operated via the Circus Defence sub-brand, plus two recent bolt-on acquisitions that broaden the robotic offering: Alberts (compact autonomous food robotics) and K-Robotics / Kitchen Robotics (autonomous sustainment robotics with NSF-certified military/commercial components). Together these products form a "house of sustainment autonomy" serving both civilian food-service customers (Meta, REWE, Mercedes-Benz Gastronomie, HEM, Mangal, Danone, Decathlon, Sodexo) and defense customers (Ukrainian, Lithuanian, and German armed forces).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• CA-1: Fully autonomous AI-robot for industrial-scale meal production, the company's flagship product.
• CA-M
• CircusOS
• FullyAI
• Circus Defence SE

Products and services

• CA-1 Series 4 Autonomous AI Cooking Robot The world's first fully autonomous AI-robotic system for industrial-scale meal production. It produces high-quality meals at industrial speed with zero compromises on freshness or flavour, occupies only ~7 sqm, and produces over 500 dishes per ingredient load. Deployed across enterprise customers including Meta Munich, REWE, Mercedes-Benz Gastronomie, HEM fuel stations, and the Mangal franchise.
• CA-M Military Sustainment System Circus's defense-focused autonomous AI robotic system for military troop supply and logistics. Deployed with the Ukrainian Ground Forces and Lithuanian Armed Forces and in integration with the German Armed Forces, with serial production scaling toward over 10,000 robots annually from a new factory planned for 2026.
• CircusOS AI-native operating system managing the full operational lifecycle of the CA-1 / CA-M fleet — demand planning, predictive diagnostics, real-time analytics, and customer interactions. It learns from trillions of real-world data points across the deployed network, continuously improving platform intelligence with each robot added.
• FullyAI (Circus Intelligence) Advanced Agentic AI intelligence layer inside CircusOS, acquired in 2025. Provides AI Agents that navigate users intuitively through complex service processes and enable new human-AI interaction patterns, with integrations targeted at the CA-1 robot and broader enterprise systems.

Quantifiable outcome

• System availability raised from ~70% at start of Q1 2026 to over 90% by April 2026
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability4 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered major strategic acquisition, flagship strategic partnership, strategic ai / platform acquisition, major regional gtm partnership (potential), core manufacturing partner, flagship franchise / gtm partnership, strategic acquisition (historical) and ecosystem participant.

• Kitchen Robotics (K-Robotics)major strategic acquisitionStrategic or Co-development Partner · 30 April 2026Circus SE completed the all-cash acquisition (low six-figure range) of U.S.-Israeli Kitchen Robotics, giving full ownership of all patents, software IP, robotic assets and know-how. Acquisition accelerates Circus's U.S. market entry to H2 2026 (from a previously planned 2027 timeline), with NSF-certified components enabling immediate deployment across military and commercial customers.
• Alberts (Belgium)major strategic acquisitionStrategic or Co-development Partner · 20 April 2026Circus SE signed a binding agreement to acquire Alberts, a Belgium-based food robotics company specializing in compact autonomous food production systems with patented technology. All-share transaction with 30-month lock-up, expected to close by end of Q2 2026; Alberts operates in six countries serving Danone, Decathlon and Sodexo. Management team to remain post-acquisition.
• ETH AI Centerflagship strategic partnershipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 April 2026Circus SE joined the ETH AI Center Entrepreneurship Program in Zurich alongside Google, Meta, Swisscom, Schneider Electric, HV Capital and Lakestar. The partnership establishes strategic collaboration with one of Europe's leading AI research institutions, integrating ETH's research network of 100+ professors and 1,500+ researchers into Circus's autonomous systems development.
• FullyAI (Fully Ventures GmbH)strategic ai / platform acquisitionStrategic or Co-development Partner · 12 January 2025Circus SE signed a term sheet to acquire all shares in FullyAI, an Agentic AI company that has already deployed its technology at Meta Platforms and Ford Motor Company. Acquisition executed via capital increase through contribution in kind (400,000 new Circus shares) plus cash payment, with 36-month lock-up period; subject to binding agreements, due diligence and regulatory approvals.
• Beijing University Food Raw Material Joint Procurement Centermajor regional gtm partnership (potential)Strategic or Co-development Partner · 12 June 2024Non-binding Memorandum of Understanding for the potential supply of 5,400 CA-1 robots to feed over 90 universities in Beijing. Represents Circus's first step into the Asian market with potential cumulative revenues in the low single-digit billion-euro range over several years, subject to successful product tests and final contracts.
• Meta Platformsflagship strategic partnershipTechnology or IntegrationCircus is actively partnering with Meta as Meta builds a licensable robotics software platform modeled after Android. Meta is testing prototypes and pilot deployments with Circus SE (alongside Unitree Robotics and Figure AI). Circus also launched the first CA-1 robot at Meta Munich and is a referenced client of FullyAI (acquired by Circus) for AI-agent technology already deployed at Meta.
• Celesticacore manufacturing partnerOEM/ Whitelabel/ Licensing PartnerStrategic manufacturing partnership to industrialize CA-1 production. In Q1 2026, production space was increased by 60% and CA-1 cycle time was reduced from 8 to ~4 weeks; targets 1,000 units/year capacity at current facility and supports a new defense factory planned for 2026 (more than 10,000 CA-M robots/year).
• Mangalflagship franchise / gtm partnershipStrategic or Co-development PartnerStrategic partnership for the rollout of the first 500 CA-1 robots across the Mangal franchise chain starting from fall 2025. Mangal serves as the franchise operator deploying Circus's autonomous AI-robotics at scale across restaurant locations.
• Aitme GmbHstrategic acquisition (historical)Strategic or Co-development PartnerCircus acquired Aitme GmbH in August 2023, a robotic manufacturer specializing in kitchen robots and smart home automation, to integrate advanced kitchen robotics into Circus's micro-kitchen hubs. The former Head of Engineering of Aitme (Jan Sorgenfrei) joined Circus as VP Engineering (Software).
• Googleecosystem participantStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed alongside Circus as a participant in the ETH AI Center Entrepreneurship Program. Circus is positioned among leading global technology players in the ETH ecosystem for foundational AI research and real-world application.
• Swisscomecosystem participantStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed alongside Circus as a participant in the ETH AI Center Entrepreneurship Program.
• Schneider Electricecosystem participantStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed alongside Circus as a participant in the ETH AI Center Entrepreneurship Program.

Scale indicators14 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights7 records

Direct peers

• Miso Robotics: U.S.-based AI food robotics company building autonomous kitchen assistants (Flippy) for restaurant fry stations and grills. Most directly comparable to Circus's CA-1 in deploying AI-driven robotic cooking into commercial food-service venues.
• Bear Robotics: U.S./Korean robotics company whose Servi and Penny robots autonomously deliver food in restaurants and senior care settings. Comparable to Circus as a commercially deployed AI service-robotics platform targeting enterprise food operators.
• Karakuri: UK-based developer of the Semblr automated meal preparation robot that assembles customized meals from ingredients in a compact footprint. Directly comparable to Circus CA-1 in targeting autonomous, footprint-efficient meal production for foodservice.
• Chef Robotics: San Francisco-based AI robotics startup offering modular robotic arms that assemble portioned meals for industrial food producers. Closely comparable to Circus in using AI + robotics to automate meal assembly at scale for enterprise customers.
• Aniai: Korean AI-robotics startup that builds autonomous frying and cooking robots (Alpha Grill) for ghost kitchens and quick-service restaurants. Comparable emerging player in the autonomous commercial cooking-robot niche.

Others

• Helsing: European AI defense technology company building AI-enabled sensing and decision software for NATO militaries. Comparable to Circus on the defense/AI side of Circus's dual-use strategy, even though its product focus is software rather than embodied robotics.

Broad incumbents

• Middleby Corporation: U.S.-listed diversified commercial foodservice equipment manufacturer owning brands such as TurboChef, Celfrost and Blodgett. Broad incumbent serving the same commercial kitchen buyer as Circus at global scale.
• RATIONAL AG: Germany-listed global market leader in commercial combi-ovens and connected cooking systems for professional kitchens. Broader incumbent serving the same professional food-service buyer Circus targets, but with a different (oven-centric) product category.

Emerging players

• Picnic Works: Seattle-based company producing modular automated food assembly systems used in pizzerias and high-volume kitchens. Comparable automated food-assembly automation with a B2B foodservice go-to-market.
• Hyphen (formerly Hyphen Foodservice Robotics): U.S.-based maker of automated meal assembly lines using robotics and AI for fast-casual restaurants. Adjacent emerging player addressing autonomous meal production with comparable technology.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/circuskitchens

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles20 records

Subsidiaries7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds5 records

Investors4 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A4 records

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Circus Group