Humanoid, industrial, and mobile robots, from factory arms to bipedal generalists.

Both are robotic arms, but industrial arms are typically fenced off and run at high speed and payload, while cobots are built with force-sensing and speed limits that let them work directly alongside people without a safety cage.

An AGV follows a fixed path — a wire, magnetic strip, or floor marking. An AMR (autonomous mobile robot) builds its own map and navigates around obstacles dynamically, which is why most new warehouse deployments use AMRs today.

Mostly in pilot form — automakers and logistics operators are running paid pilots on factory floors and in warehouses, but 2026-era humanoids are not yet in widespread, unsupervised commercial deployment.

Purchased outright, most transport and picking AMRs run $25,000–$150,000 per unit depending on payload and safety systems. A growing share of operators instead subscribe under robots-as-a-service, typically $2,000–$8,000 per robot per month with maintenance bundled in — which lowers the upfront commitment for a first deployment. Either way, budget for integration and network setup to add another 40–60% on top of hardware list price in year one.

It depends on the company. Many manufacturers sell outside their home country through regional distributors or system integrators rather than direct sale. Check the company's own channel pages for current options.

In July 2026 the FCC added foreign-produced ground-mobile robots to its Covered List: humanoids and quadrupeds, but also warehouse and delivery robots and household robots such as robot vacuums that meet its definition (over 4.4 lb, a sensor, 200 kbps connectivity and AI software). The test is where a product is made and its domestic content, not the maker's headquarters. Stationary industrial robots, drones, medical robots and connected vehicles are outside this rule. New foreign-produced models cannot be authorized without a Department of War Conditional Approval or domestic-end-product status; models authorized earlier can still be sold through January 1, 2029.

In the U.S., collaborative operation is governed by ISO 10218-1/-2 and ISO/TS 15066, which define the four collaborative modes — safety-rated monitored stop, hand-guiding, speed and separation monitoring, and power and force limiting. A cobot certified to these standards can share floor space with people; a standard industrial arm generally can't without added guarding.

It splits by category. Fixed industrial arms and cobots are still mostly purchased outright since they're long-lived, single-site assets. AMRs and humanoids increasingly ship as robots-as-a-service — a monthly subscription that bundles the hardware, software updates, and support — which is why several companies in this directory quote pilots rather than sale prices.