Amazon has acquired New York-based Fauna Robotics, maker of a small humanoid robot designed for homes and classrooms, as the e-commerce giant deepens its push into artificial intelligence-powered robotics.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Fauna’s flagship robot, Sprout, unveiled in January, is a 1.5-foot-tall humanoid built for social interaction rather than industrial work. The device can pick up light objects, move independently and perform simple gestures, and is primarily marketed as a developer platform for research institutions and companies exploring robotics in domestic settings.
Fauna Chief Executive Rob Cochran said the company would “operate as Fauna Robotics, an Amazon company,” with staff joining Amazon’s teams in New York.
Amazon said the acquisition would help it explore “new ways to make customers’ lives better and easier.”
The move marks Amazon’s latest step in a long-running strategy to build capabilities across robotics, logistics and artificial intelligence, spanning warehouses, delivery networks and, increasingly, the home.
Amazon’s robotics push began with its 2012 acquisition of Kiva Systems for $775 million, a deal that transformed its fulfillment operations by automating the movement of goods inside warehouses and laid the foundation for what is now Amazon Robotics. (Wikipedia)
Since then, the company has expanded into adjacent areas. It acquired self-driving startup Zoox in 2020 for more than $1 billion to develop autonomous delivery vehicles, and purchased robotics firms such as Canvas Technology to strengthen navigation and automation capabilities. (TechTarget)
Amazon has also pursued consumer robotics, though with mixed success. Its planned $1.7 billion acquisition of iRobot was scrapped in 2024 following regulatory pressure in the United States and Europe. (Amazon News)
More recently, the company has moved to bolster its AI-driven robotics expertise by hiring key personnel from startup Covariant and securing access to its robotic foundation models, underscoring its focus on combining machine learning with physical automation. (TechCrunch)
Industry analysts say these moves point to a broader ambition: building an end-to-end automation stack that spans warehouses, transportation and consumer environments.
Sprout, priced at about $50,000, has been adopted by early customers including Disney and research laboratories, positioning it as a platform for experimentation rather than a mass-market product.
The acquisition comes amid intensifying competition in AI-driven robotics, as advances in machine learning enable robots to perform more human-like tasks. Companies such as Nvidia and Tesla are investing heavily in autonomous systems for industrial and consumer use.
Separately, UK-based Humanoid has unveiled a robot designed for industrial environments, highlighting a growing divide between factory-focused machines and socially interactive robots.
Amazon’s acquisition of Fauna suggests it is positioning for the next phase of automation, where advances in AI extend beyond software into physical systems capable of interacting with everyday environments.