KELO Robotics GmbH

What KELO Robotics GmbH does

KELO Robotics GmbH is a privately held German robotics company headquartered in Augsburg that designs and manufactures collaborative mobile logistics robots and a modular prototyping platform. The company's core technology is the KELO Drive — a gearless hub motor with caster-wheel suspension that provides inherent safety (push-back capability even when actuated) and omni-directional movement, with a payload-to-weight ratio of 5:1 to 9:1 versus 2:1 to 3:1 for comparable robots. The product portfolio spans seven mobile logistics robots (KELO DT 500, KELO LC 750, KELO FL 1000, KELO PM 1000, KELO LC 200, KELO LC 350) for transporting carts, pallets, and totes, the KELO AD UV-C disinfection robot, and the ROBILE modular prototyping kit. Custom designs include the Dual Arm KELO 500 research platform, RoXetto (a robotized xetto loading system), and a 1000-kg robotized material container.

KELO operates a hybrid business model. Revenue streams include one-time hardware sales of complete robots, e-commerce sales of ROBILE modular components, shared-development contracts (Lot Size 1) where the customer pays 50% of development costs, volume manufacturing agreements (Lot Size 100) requiring a minimum order of 100 units at a discounted price, Robot as a Service rental subscriptions, and licensing of closed-source torque-based platform controllers. The go-to-market combines a self-serve online shop targeting developers and SMBs with direct enterprise sales for customized solutions, plus channel integrations with Universal Robots, UFACTORY, and Kinova cobot arms and Datalogic, Hokuyo, and RoboSense sensors. The company is managed by co-founders Dr. Erwin Prassler (CEO) and Arthur Ketels (CTO) and operates with a team of 14 engineers plus support staff. No funding rounds, institutional investors, or revenue figures are disclosed in the source material.

Name

KELO Robotics GmbH

Legal name

KELO Robotics GmbH

Website

https://kelo-robotics.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

KELO Robotics GmbH is a German robotics company that designs and manufactures inherently safe, collaborative mobile logistics robots and a modular prototyping platform using a proprietary gearless hub motor (KELO Drive), serving warehouse, manufacturing, healthcare, and research customers worldwide through direct, e-commerce, and channel sales.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Industrial Mobile Robotics

NAICS

Industrial Truck, Tractor, Trailer, and Stacker Machinery Manufacturing (333924), Material Handling Equipment Manufacturing (33392)

SIC

Industrial Trucks, Tractors, Trailors & Stackers (3537)

akta.pro primary industry

Industrial & Warehouse Robotics (HDAAAIAA)

Keywords

• Mobile logistics robots
• Autonomous mobile robots
• Collaborative robots
• Industrial robotics
• Modular robotics platforms

Headquarters

HQ city

Augsburg

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Robot Hardware Sales: Sale of complete mobile logistics robots including KELO DT 500, LC 750, FL 1000, PM 1000, LC 200, LC 350, and KELO AD disinfection robot. One-time purchase model.
2. ROBILE Modular Components: Sale of modular robot building blocks (bricks) including active wheels, passive caster wheels, CPU, batteries, and accessories through e-commerce platform.
3. Lot Size 1 - Shared Development: Customer pays 50% of development cost, receives rights to manufacture and commercialize robots while KELO retains right to independently commercialize results.
4. Lot Size 100 - Volume Manufacturing: Customers guarantee order of 100 devices at discounted price; KELO covers R&D costs and retains IP ownership.
5. Robot as a Service (RaaS): Rental of off-the-shelf robots with maintenance and 24/7 service included. Rental conditions depend on contract runtime.
6. Proprietary Software: Closed-source torque-based platform controller sold separately for safer human-robot interaction.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

KELO Robotics GmbH designs, develops, and manufactures inherently safe, omni-directional collaborative mobile logistics robots built around its proprietary KELO Drive gearless hub-motor technology. The company sells a portfolio of off-the-shelf mobile robots (dock-and-tow, lift-and-carry, forklift, pallet mover, disinfection) and a modular ROBILE prototyping kit, alongside customized design services and Robot-as-a-Service rentals for warehouse, manufacturing, and public-facility customers.

Product overview

KELO Robotics GmbH offers a platform-based portfolio of collaborative mobile logistics robots and modular prototyping components. The core offering includes mobile logistics robots (KELO DT 500, KELO LC 750, KELO FL 1000, KELO PM 1000, KELO LC 200, KELO LC 350) designed for autonomous and collaborative transportation of carts, pallets, and totes, plus the KELO AD disinfection robot with UV-C technology. The KELO Drive technology serves as the fundamental inherently-safe omni-directional drive component across all robots. The company also provides the KELO ROBILE modular prototyping platform with bricks, pre-configured robots, extensions, and accessories for rapid robot development. Integration options include collaborative robot arms (Universal Robots, Kinova, UFACTORY), sensors (DATALOGIC, Hokuyo, RoboSense LiDAR), and grippers. Custom design services (Lot Size 1, Lot Size 100) and Robot as a Service rental complete the commercial offerings.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• ROBILE: A modular autonomous mobile robot (AMR) construction kit for rapid prototyping of industrial-grade mobile robots. Includes modular bricks (wheels, batteries, CPU) that can be assembled in various configurations.

Products and services

• KELO DT 500 Collaborative dock and tow robot that docks to and tows carts and dollies. Uses AI-based object recognition for cart detection and autonomously tows loads to destination. Targeted at warehouse and logistics operations.
• KELO LC 750 Collaborative lift and carry robot that drives underneath load carriers and lifts them for transport. Designed to handle approximately 90% of mobile load carriers with a minimum 135mm ground clearance, for warehouse and order fulfillment use cases.
• KELO FL 1000 Autonomous forklift robot with an extendable fork for lifting pallets off the ground. Can operate autonomously or collaboratively under human control, functioning like an electric pedestrian truck for pallet handling.
• KELO PM 1000 Pallet mover robot designed to pick up and drop off pallets at transfer stations by driving into a station under a pallet and lifting it, enabling pallet transfer in warehouse environments.
• KELO LC 200 Lift and carry robot for transporting totes and containers in order fulfillment centers, handling standardized containers up to 200kg with automatic pickup at transfer stations.
• KELO LC 350 Collaborative lift and carry robot with a scissor mechanism that lifts heavy or bulky items up to 1 meter in height, supporting human workers in truck loading and conveyor picking operations.
• KELO AD Autonomous UV-C disinfection robot for hospitals, airports, convention centers, fair grounds and universities. Uses a 360-degree camera-based AI people detection system that switches off UVC lamps pointing toward detected humans for safe operation near people.
• KELO ROBILE Modular construction kit of robotic bricks (active wheels, passive caster wheels, CPU, batteries, empty bricks) for rapid prototyping of industrial-grade mobile robots, with standardized 233x233mm bricks that integrate with cobot arms and sensors. Targeted at researchers, developers, and SMB customers.
• Dual Arm KELO 500 Customized research platform built on the KELO DT 500 base equipped with two 7-DOF lightweight arms for bimanual manipulation research, including motion coordination for assembly, pick-and-place, and fetch-and-carry tasks.
• RoXetto Robotized version of the commercial xetto loading system equipped with four KELO drives 100 as force amplifiers. Controlled via a haptic interface for strain-free manual handling of 250kg payloads.
• Robotized Material Container Customized material container equipped with eight KELO drives 100 delivering 1000kg payload, with a haptic interface enabling manual control with minimal applied force.
• Lot Size 1 Shared-development service where the customer pays 50% of development cost and receives rights to manufacture and commercialize the resulting robot, while KELO retains the right to commercialize results independently. Targets enterprises with specific automation needs.
• Lot Size 100 Volume manufacturing service requiring a minimum order of 100 customized robots at a discounted price. KELO covers R&D costs and retains IP ownership; recommended 10% per year maintenance/service on contract volume.
• Robot as a Service (RaaS) Subscription rental of off-the-shelf KELO robots with 24/7 maintenance and service included, with rental conditions depending on contract runtime. Targeted at customers not ready to purchase robots outright.

Quantifiable outcome

• 40% efficiency improvement in operations through human-robot collaboration
• +3 more outcomes

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration12 records

AI capability4 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Universal RobotscoreTechnology or IntegrationROBILE mobile platforms compatible with Universal Robots cobot arms (UR3e, UR5e). KELO offers pre-configured collaborative mobile manipulator solutions combining ROBILE base with UR arms.
• UFACTORYcoreTechnology or IntegrationROBILE platforms compatible with UFACTORY xArm cobots. Products include xArm 2-finger gripper and vacuum gripper integrated with ROBILE ecosystem.
• DatalogiccoreTechnology or IntegrationDatalogic Laser Sentinel safety laser scanners offered as compatible sensors for ROBILE platforms. 72+ m2 safety monitoring with 5.5m detection over 275 degrees.
• HokuyocoreTechnology or IntegrationHokuyo UST-05LX scanning rangefinder (5m range, 270 degree view, 40Hz) offered as compatible sensor for ROBILE platforms.
• xetto (ROXETTO)coreOEM/ Whitelabel/ Licensing PartnerRoxetto is a robotized version of the commercial xetto loading system. KELO replaced passive wheels with KELO drives 100 to create an omnidirectional force-amplifying version of the original product.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• KUKA: KUKA is a major industrial robotics incumbent that also offers mobile robot platforms (KMR) via KUKA Mobile Robotics. Competes with KELO in mobile logistics but with broader industrial robot and systems integration capabilities.
• Omron (Mobile Robots): Omron's automation division produces the LD-series mobile robots among a much broader industrial automation portfolio. Competes with KELO in mobile logistics but as part of a much wider controls and sensing offering.
• Boston Dynamics: Boston Dynamics' Stretch robot is a warehouse case-handling AMR that directly overlaps with KELO's logistics robots. Boston Dynamics is a much larger, well-funded incumbent with significantly broader robotics capabilities.

Direct peers

• Locus Robotics: Locus Robotics builds autonomous mobile robots for warehouse order fulfillment, particularly for collaborative picking applications. Comparable to KELO's collaborative logistics robots in warehouse and e-commerce use cases.
• Mobile Industrial Robots (MiR): MiR (owned by Teradyne) is a leading manufacturer of autonomous mobile robots for warehouse and logistics applications, including MiR250, MiR600, and MiR1350. Directly competes with KELO's mobile logistics robots in transporting pallets, carts, and totes in industrial environments.
• Fetch Robotics: Fetch Robotics (owned by Zebra Technologies) provides autonomous mobile robots for warehouse fulfillment and material handling, including the Freight series and Roller Top robots. Directly competes with KELO in warehouse logistics AMRs.
• Geek+: Geek+ is a global AMR vendor offering picking, moving, and sorting robots for warehouses and logistics. Comparable to KELO across the same broad use-case categories including pallet moving and sorting.
• OTTO Motors: OTTO Motors (owned by Rockwell Automation) builds heavy-payload autonomous mobile robots for material handling in manufacturing and logistics. Directly comparable to KELO's PM 1000 and FL 1000 pallet-moving and forklift robots.

Others

• Universal Robots: Universal Robots is a partner and cobot manufacturer rather than a direct competitor. KELO's mobile platforms integrate with UR cobot arms, making UR both a sales channel and a partial benchmark for collaborative robot ecosystem reach.

Emerging players

• Agility Robotics: Agility Robotics builds humanoid and bipedal robots (Digit) targeting warehouse and logistics applications. Adjacent to KELO's thesis on collaborative logistics robots but operates in a different form factor (humanoid vs wheeled AMR).

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/privacy
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@kelorobotics
• Facebookfacebook.com/explanation
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/kelo-robotics-gmbh
• Instagramhelp.instagram.com/519522125107875

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

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 KELO Robotics GmbH