Donut Robotics
Donut Robotics (ドーナッツロボティクス) is a Tokyo-based Japanese robotics company that develops and sells AI-powered humanoid and service robots under the 'cinnamon' brand, using proprietary Vision-Language-Action AI and Silent Gesture Control to serve industrial enterprises, retail and service operators, and OEMs licensing its AI platform.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2014
- HeadquartersKokura, Japan
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Donut Robotics does
Donut Robotics (ドーナッツロボティクス株式会社) is a Japanese robotics company founded in 2014 as a garage startup in Kitakyushu, Fukuoka and formally incorporated on January 4, 2016, currently headquartered in Roppongi Hills Midtown Tower, Tokyo. The company develops and sells AI-powered humanoid and service robots under the 'cinnamon' product family, supported by a proprietary Vision-Language-Action (VLA) AI and Vision-Language Model (VLM) developed entirely in Japan. Its differentiator is the integration of in-house language-understanding AI with physical robotic control, including the world's first Silent Gesture Control system on a mass-produced bipedal humanoid.
The product portfolio spans cinnamon 1 (a ~170cm, ~70kg bipedal humanoid targeted at construction sites and factories), cinnamon Guide (a next-generation service robot for retail with patrol, anti-theft, translation, and sales functions, priced at 2.2 million yen or 62,000 yen per month on subscription), the original cinnamon robot (deployed at airports and welfare facilities), and the newly announced cinnamon mini (a compact humanoid for education/entertainment, debuted at Sushi Tech 2026). All products share the donut AI platform for vision-language-action capabilities.
Donut Robotics monetizes through three channels: direct enterprise hardware sales of cinnamon units to major Japanese corporations (primarily construction and factory deployments), a recurring monthly subscription model for cinnamon Guide service robots, and AI integration/licensing of its proprietary VLA into third-party robot platforms, anchored by an April 2025 partnership with a US-based quadruped robot company. Go-to-market relies on enterprise field sales, industry events (CES 2022, Sushi Tech 2026), and earned media coverage in outlets such as The New York Times, Forbes, TIME, and NHK Science Zero. The company is privately held with 1–10 employees, registered capital of approximately 308 million yen, and total disclosed funding led by a 2020 Rozetta round of roughly $2.84 million.
Donut Robotics firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Donut Robotics
- Legal name
- ドーナッツ ロボティクス株式会社
- Website
- https://donutrobotics.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2014
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Donut Robotics (ドーナッツロボティクス) is a Tokyo-based Japanese robotics company that develops and sells AI-powered humanoid and service robots under the 'cinnamon' brand, using proprietary Vision-Language-Action AI and Silent Gesture Control to serve industrial enterprises, retail and service operators, and OEMs licensing its AI platform.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Donut Robotics industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Humanoid Robotics
- NAICS
- Industrial Design Services (54142)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Humanoid & General-Purpose Robots (HDAAAIAJ)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Industrial Robotics & Cobots (IMAIAMAB), Home Companion & Social Robots (CRACARAE)
Keywords
Where Donut Robotics is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Kokura
- HQ country
- Japan
- HQ region
- Asia
Offices1 record
Markets served
Donut Robotics business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Humanoid Robot Sales (cinnamon 1): Sale of mass-produced bipedal humanoid robots (cinnamon 1) primarily targeting construction sites and factories. Already deployed to major enterprises.
- Service Robot Sales (cinnamon Guide): Sale of next-generation service robots (cinnamon Guide) with features including patrol, customer service, translation, and sales capabilities. Sold at 2.2 million yen per unit.
- Service Robot Subscription (cinnamon Guide): Monthly rental subscription model for cinnamon Guide service robots at 62,000 yen per month with installment payment options available.
- AI Integration Services: Integration of proprietary donut AI into third-party robot platforms, including quadruped robots from US-based companies.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Monthly | cinnamon Guide - Monthly subscription |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | cinnamon Guide - One-time purchase |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels5 records
Donut Robotics product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Donut Robotics develops, manufactures, and sells humanoid and service robots powered by its proprietary Japan-developed VLA (Vision-Language-Action) AI. Its core products include the mass-produced bipedal cinnamon 1 humanoid with Silent Gesture Control for industrial use, the cinnamon Guide customer service robot, the original cinnamon smart robot deployed at airports and welfare facilities, and the compact cinnamon mini. The company also licenses its donut AI for integration into third-party robot platforms.
Product overview
Donut Robotics offers a portfolio of humanoid and service robots powered by proprietary AI (VLA/VLM). The core products include cinnamon 1 (mass-produced bipedal humanoid with Silent Gesture Control for construction/factory use), cinnamon Guide (customer service robot with translation and shoplifting deterrence), cinnamon (original smart robot for airports/welfare), and cinnamon mini (compact humanoid for education/entertainment). All products share the company's donut AI platform for vision-language-action capabilities.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- cinnamon: Initial product line of service robots developed by Donut Robotics, deployed at airports and welfare facilities.
- cinnamon 1
- cinnamon mini
- cinnamon Guide
Products and services
- cinnamon 1 World's first mass-produced bipedal humanoid robot equipped with Silent Gesture Control for industrial use; approximately 170cm tall and 70kg, with VLM-based image and language understanding and VLA-based action execution. Targeted at construction sites and factory operations to address industrial labor shortages and hazardous work environments.
- cinnamon Guide Next-generation customer service robot with in-store patrol (shoplifting deterrence), multilingual customer service, world-fastest-level translation, and product sales functions. Sold at 2.2 million yen per unit or available as a monthly subscription from 62,000 yen (tax included). Designed for retail, airport, and welfare facility deployments.
- cinnamon Original smart robot from Donut Robotics with deployment history at airports and welfare facilities. Serves as the foundational platform of the company's robotics portfolio and underpins later humanoid product lines.
- cinnamon mini Compact humanoid robot designed for educational and entertainment applications; a smaller, more accessible variant of the cinnamon humanoid series with planned dance collaboration capabilities. First debuted at Sushi Tech 2026.
- donut AI Integration / OEM Licensing Licensing of Donut Robotics' proprietary VLA/VLM donut AI for integration into third-party robot platforms, including a US-based quadruped robot partner. Extends the company's AI capabilities beyond its own humanoid products to international robot manufacturers and OEMs.
Quantifiable outcome
- World's first mass-produced bipedal humanoid with gesture control deployed to major enterprises
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Donut Robotics
Customer profileNamed customers2 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Donut Robotics technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability6 records
Feature3 records
Donut Robotics partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- US-based Quadruped Robot Company (unnamed)corePartnership with a US-originated quadruped robot company to integrate donut AI into their robot platforms. This represents the company's first international partnership for AI integration into third-party robotics hardware, expanding the reach of their proprietary VLA technology beyond their own humanoid products.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Donut Robotics competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Apptronik: US-based developer of the Apollo humanoid robot targeting industrial and logistics applications, with partnerships including Google DeepMind. Directly comparable on bipedal humanoid form factor, AI control stack, and industrial enterprise deployments.
- Agility Robotics: US-based developer of the Digit bipedal humanoid, focused on logistics, warehouses, and industrial tasks. Directly comparable on bipedal humanoid form factor and industrial enterprise GTM, with significantly more capital and commercial deployments.
- 1X Technologies: Norway/US humanoid developer of the Neo bipedal robot backed by OpenAI. Directly comparable on bipedal humanoid form factor, AI-driven control, and consumer/enterprise dual GTM.
- Figure AI: US-based developer of the Figure 01/02 general-purpose bipedal humanoid robot targeting industrial and commercial applications. Directly comparable to Donut on bipedal humanoid form factor, VLA-style AI control, and industrial deployment focus, but at vastly larger scale and funding.
- Unitree Robotics: Chinese developer of humanoid and quadruped robots including the H1 and G1 bipedal humanoids. Directly comparable as a humanoid robotics competitor, though Unitree is a broad incumbent across quadrupeds, humanoids, and consumer robotics with significantly larger scale and lower price points.
Broad incumbents
- UBTech Robotics: China-based listed humanoid and service robotics company behind the Walker S humanoid and broader commercial robot portfolio. Broad incumbent across service and humanoid robots with significant manufacturing scale and global distribution.
- Boston Dynamics: US-based developer of Spot (quadruped), Stretch (logistics), and the Atlas humanoid robot. Broad incumbent in mobile robotics with comparable AI-driven control and direct overlap with Donut's US-quadruped partnership and humanoid ambitions.
- SoftBank Robotics: Japan-based developer of the Pepper, NAO, and Whiz service robots and broader robotics portfolio. Broad incumbent operating in humanoid and service robotics, and the company where Donut's Head of Strategy previously led the humanoid robot business division.
Emerging players
- Sanctuary AI: Canada-based developer of the Phoenix bipedal humanoid and the Carbon AI control stack. Emerging player with comparable VLA-style AI control focus, though more research-oriented and targeting a different geographic enterprise base.
- Fourier Intelligence: Shanghai-based developer of the GR-1 and GR-2 general-purpose humanoids targeting healthcare, research, and industrial applications. Emerging direct competitor with comparable bipedal humanoid form factor, though operating primarily in China.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Donut Robotics social profiles
Digital presenceDonut Robotics financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Donut Robotics leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles12 records
Donut Robotics funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds4 records
Investors4 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Donut Robotics M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Donut Robotics
What does Donut Robotics do?
Donut Robotics develops, manufactures, and sells humanoid and service robots powered by its proprietary Japan-developed VLA (Vision-Language-Action) AI. Its core products include the mass-produced bipedal cinnamon 1 humanoid with Silent Gesture Control for industrial use, the cinnamon Guide customer service robot, the original cinnamon smart robot deployed at airports and welfare facilities, and the compact cinnamon mini. The company also licenses its donut AI for integration into third-party robot platforms.
Is Donut Robotics a public or private company?
Donut Robotics is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Donut Robotics founded?
Donut Robotics was founded in 2014. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Donut Robotics based?
Donut Robotics is headquartered in Kokura, Japan, in the Asia region.
How does Donut Robotics make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Humanoid Robot Sales (cinnamon 1) is the primary driver. The others are service Robot Sales (cinnamon Guide), service Robot Subscription (cinnamon Guide) and AI Integration Services.
Who are Donut Robotics's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Apptronik, Agility Robotics, 1X Technologies, Figure AI and Unitree Robotics. Broad incumbents are UBTech Robotics, Boston Dynamics and SoftBank Robotics. Emerging players are Sanctuary AI and Fourier Intelligence.
Does Donut Robotics have an API?
No public API is recorded for Donut Robotics.
What industry is Donut Robotics in?
Donut Robotics's product category is Humanoid Robotics. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HDAAAIAJ, Humanoid & General-Purpose Robots, with a secondary code of IMAIAMAB, Industrial Robotics & Cobots. Its NAICS code is 54142.