Robot Operating System

What Robot Operating System does

Robot Operating System (ROS) is an open-source set of software libraries, tools, and middleware for building robot applications. Founded in 2007 and maintained by Open Robotics from Richmond, United States, ROS provides drivers, state-of-the-art algorithms, and developer utilities that bridge heterogeneous hardware components with software applications in robotic systems, abstracting hardware complexity so developers can focus on application logic. The current generation runs as ROS 2, distributed across multiple long-term support and feature releases including Jazzy Jalisco (Ubuntu 24.04/Windows 10), Kilted (with native macOS Apple Silicon support), and Lyrical Luth (Ubuntu 26.04/Windows 11, supported until 2031).

Name

Robot Operating System

Legal name

Robot Operating System

Website

https://ros.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

ROS is an open-source middleware framework maintained by Open Robotics that provides software libraries, drivers, and algorithms for building robot applications, serving developers, researchers, hobbyists, and industrial users globally.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Robotics Middleware

NAICS

Computer Systems Design Services (541512)

SIC

Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYHDAAAIAK

Robot Software, Autonomy Stacks & Simulation (ROS, digital twins)

Hardware, Technology & Telecom/Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning/Robotics & Autonomous Systems

Keywords

• Robotics middleware
• Robot software framework
• Open source robotics
• Robotics development tools
• Robotics algorithms library

Headquarters

HQ city

Richmond

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Open Source Software Distribution: ROS is distributed as free, open-source software with no direct revenue from the software itself. The project is maintained by Open Robotics which likely funds development through commercial services, consulting, and enterprise support offerings.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Robot Operating System (ROS) is an open-source set of software libraries and tools for building robot applications. It functions as robotic middleware bridging hardware components and software applications, providing everything from device drivers to state-of-the-art algorithms, and powerful developer tools that enable real-time data processing and simplify integration of robotic systems. The framework is distributed free of charge under Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 and supported across Ubuntu, Windows, and macOS (including Apple Silicon).

Product overview

Robot Operating System (ROS) is an open-source set of software libraries and tools for building robot applications. The product portfolio includes multiple ROS 2 long-term support (LTS) releases such as Jazzy Jalisco (targeted at Ubuntu 24.04 and Windows 10) and Lyrical Luth (targeted at Ubuntu 26.04 and Windows 11 with support until 2031), along with the recent ROS 2 Kilted release featuring native macOS Apple Silicon support. ROS provides drivers, state-of-the-art algorithms, and powerful developer tools for robotics projects.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• ROS 2 Jazzy Jalisco Latest long-term support (LTS) distribution of ROS 2 targeted at Ubuntu 24.04 (Noble) and Windows 10, providing long-term support and stability for production robotics applications. Aimed at developers and enterprises building and deploying robot applications requiring an extended support window.
• ROS 2 Lyrical Luth Latest ROS 2 long-term distribution with support until 2031, targeted at Ubuntu 26.04 (Resolute) and Windows 11, with additional platform support to varying degrees. Designed for long-horizon robotics projects and enterprises that need multi-year support guarantees.
• ROS 2 Kilted Kaiju ROS 2 distribution featuring native support for macOS on Apple Silicon hardware. Targeted at Ubuntu 26.04 (Resolute) and Windows 11, with support until 2031. Aimed at developers working on macOS, particularly those using Apple Silicon Macs, who require first-class platform support.

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• AMDminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2025AMD served as the video sponsor for ROSCon 2025. Their generous support made the ROSCon live stream and videos possible, demonstrating corporate sponsorship of the ROS community event.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• NVIDIA (Isaac / Isaac ROS): NVIDIA offers the Isaac robotics platform and Isaac ROS, GPU-accelerated GEMs that run on top of ROS 2. It is a direct competitor providing an integrated hardware-plus-software robotics stack targeting production deployments in autonomous machines, where ROS as a standalone project competes for developer mindshare.
• MathWorks (MATLAB & Simulink): MathWorks offers MATLAB and Simulink with robotics-specific toolboxes used for algorithm development, simulation, and code generation for robotic systems. It competes with ROS for the same developer/R&D budgets in robotics, particularly in academia and industrial R&D.
• Microsoft (Azure Robotics / discontinued RDS lineage): Microsoft has historically operated in the robotics platform space (Robotics Developer Studio) and continues to expose robotics-relevant cloud services via Azure. It competes as a broader incumbent platform alternative for developers building robotics applications.

Emerging players

• Apex.AI: Apex.AI builds a safety-certified ROS-based operating system for autonomous vehicles and robotics. It directly extends the ROS ecosystem into production and safety-critical use cases (notably automotive), competing with the upstream ROS project's ability to serve those high-value verticals.
• PickNik Robotics: PickNik Robotics is a commercial services and tooling company built around the MoveIt motion planning framework for ROS. It represents the 'commercial layer' on top of the ROS ecosystem and competes for enterprise ROS support, custom development, and motion planning tooling budgets.
• Foxglove: Foxglove provides visualization, debugging, and data management tooling for ROS-based robotics development. It is a SaaS overlay on top of the ROS ecosystem that competes for tooling spend from professional robotics developers.

Direct peers

• Gazebo (Open Robotics): Gazebo is the simulation platform tightly integrated with ROS and now branded as part of the broader Open Robotics stack. It is the canonical robotics simulator paired with ROS and represents a complementary rather than competing technology within the same ecosystem governance.
• Husarion: Husarion builds ROS-based robot platforms (e.g., ROSbot) and turnkey robotics hardware for research and education. It is a direct downstream user of ROS and competes for the same research/education robotics budgets while relying on the ROS ecosystem.
• Robotis: Robotis manufactures robotic hardware (Dynamixel servos, humanoid platforms) tightly integrated with ROS and ROS 2. It is a direct ecosystem peer whose commercial hardware value is materially enabled by ROS support.

Others

• Open Source Robotics Corporation / Open Robotics: Open Robotics is the sponsoring organization that maintains ROS and Gazebo. It is not a commercial competitor but the institutional steward of the ROS project, holding copyright for the official website and branding and shaping governance and roadmap direction.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubevimeo.com/showcase/11987695
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/r-o-s

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Robot Operating System