An open source wheeled humanoid with an expressive personality. Full bill of materials under $1,500.
Get in touchReal hardware. Real specs. Open source.
Capable household robots exist. They just cost $50,000+ and live in labs. We built the same class of machine for a fraction of the price, and open sourced everything.
$1,500
Complete bill of materials
Arms, base, lift, compute, power, and controls all included. The full autonomous wheeled humanoid build, not a partial starter kit.
$1,500
Complete bill of materials
Arms, base, lift, compute, power, and controls all included. The full autonomous wheeled humanoid build, not a partial starter kit.
2.5 kg
Combined arm payload
Two 7-DOF arms delivering over 1 kg per arm, for 2.5 kg combined payload and practical manipulation beyond simple demos.
600 mm
Vertical lift stroke
600 mm travel at 60 mm/s with 80 kg lift capacity. Floor to countertop to top shelf — the full range a household robot needs.
Features
What you get for $1,500 — and why each part exists.
Omnidirectional Base
Built from upcycled hoverboard motors with custom omnidirectional wheels. The OpenBase3 is the only omni base on the market using hoverboard motors — already in use by robotics startups and cited in academic research. Moves in any direction with no awkward turning.
Expressive Face
A custom PCB matrix of NeoPixel LEDs generates real-time micro-expressions from live voice input. It shifts when it's listening and glows when it's happy. You read its mood the way you'd read a person's face.
Coming Soon
7 DOF GEM Arm
A ground-up rethink of the SO-101. We tripled the peak payload (400g → 1.2kg), added 2 degrees of freedom, swapped in a parallel gripper, and extended reach from 45cm to 60cm. It's the strongest arm in this price range and the reason Elo can actually do useful household tasks.
Vertical Lift
Reverse-engineered from a Jiecang desk lift column. 60mm/s travel, 600mm stroke, under $150. A solution that used to cost $1,000. It takes Elo from floor level to countertop height to the top shelf — the full range a household robot needs.
Our Manifesto
The household robotthat costs less than a month's rent.
Right now, robots that can genuinely help at home, carry plates, tidy up, and reach into cupboards, cost between $15,000 and $100,000. They live in labs. They run on research grants. They are out of reach for almost everyone else.
We think that's wrong.
A machine capable of useful domestic work should cost closer to $1,500. So we built one.
Elo isn't a pair of arms fixed to a desk for a staged demo. It drives through the whole house on a holonomic base. A vertical lift takes it from floor level to countertop height to the top shelf. The arms are strong enough to carry plates, groceries, and toys, and eventually cook. It's one system built to handle most everyday tasks.
We also gave it a face. Not as decoration, but because a robot that lives in someone's home has to feel welcome there. Capability alone won't drive adoption.
Today, Elo is for researchers, developers, and early adopters who want a serious platform without a six-figure price tag. Over time, it's for everyone.
The people behind Elo.
A student team spread across London's universities. We build robots because nobody told us we couldn't.
Get in touch.
Want to collaborate, build on Elo, or just ask us something?