Agile Robots

What they do

Agile Robots builds robot systems that can feel as well as move. Its arms use force and torque sensing to handle delicate assembly and inspection tasks, and the company adds robotic hands, mobile platforms, software and complete production lines on top. In late 2025 it introduced Agile ONE, a humanoid robot, and it now presents itself as a supplier of physical AI for industry rather than a maker of single machines.

Why it matters

Most industrial robots are strong and precise but blind to contact. Force-sensitive robots can work alongside people and take on tasks such as fitting parts or polishing surfaces that previously needed human touch. Agile Robots has taken that research-grade capability and built a commercial group around it through a string of acquisitions, including Franka Robotics, the logistics robot maker idealworks, the engineering firm BÄR Automation and, in April 2026, thyssenkrupp Automation Engineering. The result is a company that can sell everything from a single arm to a full automated plant.

Products to know

• Diana 7: a seven-axis, force-sensitive robot arm launched in 2019.
• Agile ONE: the company's humanoid robot, introduced in November 2025.
• Agile Hand: a dexterous robotic hand building on the founders' DLR research.
• AgileCore: the software platform that runs and coordinates its robots.

The German angle

Agile Robots comes straight out of one of Germany's most respected robotics laboratories. Zhaopeng Chen and Peter Meusel were researchers at the German Aerospace Center's robotics institute in Oberpfaffenhofen, where Chen worked on an acclaimed humanoid hand. They first spun off Wessling Robotics, then founded Agile Robots in 2018 with eight other DLR specialists. The company's headquarters is in Munich, and its acquisition of thyssenkrupp's automation engineering arm, now operating as Krause Automation, shows a young firm absorbing parts of established German industry. It is a clear example of state-funded research turning into an industrial business.