Industrial & SMB robotPilot only
Kepler Robotics K2 'Bumblebee'
A $34,000 'mass-produced' humanoid — where claims and verification part ways.
We haven't tested this machine hands-on, so this profile carries no rating — every fact below traces to the sources at the end, and the judgments are clearly ours. Full methodology on the Robot Tracker.
At a glance
- Status
- Pilot onlyWorking in partner facilities — you can't buy one
- Can you buy it?
- Yes
- Price
- List RMB 248,000 (~$34,000), B2B
- Form factor
- Bipedal humanoid (industrial)
- AI brain
- In-house (hybrid architecture, 100 TOPS onboard)
- Maker
- Kepler Robotics (China)
- Backing
- Reportedly controlled by A-share-listed Tao Motor via acquisition
Kepler's K2 'Bumblebee' is this tracker's best case study in reading robot announcements. The company's claims are bold: the 'world's first commercially available hybrid-architecture humanoid,' mass production started September 2025, units 'shipping to customers,' framework agreements for 'several thousand' units — all at a genuinely disruptive RMB 248,000 (~$34,000) list price for a full-size industrial humanoid with 8-hour runtime and a 30 kg dual-arm payload.
What independent verification supports is narrower: the strongest confirmed signal is K2 units in real-world testing at an SAIC-GM auto plant in Shanghai, and a deployment registry that reviewed the evidence rates the K2 at pilot maturity — noting zero named end customers and that framework agreements are intent, not booked orders. Kepler is also now reportedly controlled by A-share-listed Tao Motor. The robot and price are real; the 'mass production' is, so far, a claim. We list it as a pilot and will upgrade the status when named customers appear.
K2 'Bumblebee' in pictures
Images are the manufacturers' own press and product photography, shown here for identification and review, and credited to the rights holder.
What's real
- • An aggressive, published list price (~$34,000) for a full-size industrial humanoid with credible specs (8 h runtime, 30 kg dual-arm payload, proprietary roller-screw actuators)
- • Verified real-world testing at an SAIC-GM plant — a real automotive proving ground
Know before you watch (or buy)
- • 'Mass production' and 'shipping' are company claims with zero named end customers; independent registry review rates it pilot-stage
- • Framework agreements for 'several thousand units' signal intent, not orders — a distinction this industry blurs constantly
- • Corporate control reportedly changed hands (Tao Motor acquisition) — watch for strategy shifts
The evidence
Verified: real-world testing at an SAIC-GM plant (Shanghai). Claimed but unverified: mass production, customer shipments, and 'several thousand' units in framework agreements.
Sources: Robotics Tomorrow · DEPLOY registry
What changed on K2 'Bumblebee''s own pages
Nothing yet. We re-crawl the maker's own price and product pages and record anything that moves — a price, a ship date, a caveat appearing or disappearing. We've been watching since 2026-07-12and this maker hasn't changed those pages since.
We report what changed and when, with the page it changed on. We don't speculate about why.
Bottom line
Potentially the price-disruptor of industrial humanoids — and currently the clearest example of why this tracker assigns status from evidence rather than press releases. If SAIC-GM or anyone else converts testing into a named order, the K2 jumps several rungs; until then, it's a very promising pilot.
FAQ
Is the Kepler K2 really in mass production?
That's Kepler's claim — announced September 2025 at RMB 248,000 (~$34,000), with 'framework agreements for several thousand units.' Independent review tells a more modest story: the strongest verified evidence is K2 units in testing at an SAIC-GM plant in Shanghai, with no named end customers, which is why deployment registries (and we) rate it pilot-stage rather than shipping.