Apple’s ‘Tabletop Robot’ Could Arrive by 2027
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Following the cancellation of its very ambitious autonomous vehicle initiative, Apple has reportedly turned its focus to more modest mechanical engineering projects that focus on personal robotics for the home. A new report reveals Apple is now pouring substantial resources into creating a tabletop home robotic device for its next new product category.
According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, who has shared several reports on Apple’s robotics work over the past few months, Apple is not only moving forward with this new device but also has a team of several hundred people working on it.
The device, which Gurman describes as “a pricey tabletop home device that combines an iPad-like display with a robotic limb,” sounds like the hybrid combination of a HomePod and iPad that we’ve already heard rumors about for the past few years. While those early reports seemed a bit speculative, it’s clear that this project exists and has moved beyond the concept stage.
Apple may have broader ambitions for robotics, but this first take won’t be a helper bot that roams around your home. Instead, it’s expected to be Apple’s take on a smart home hub that competes with Amazon’s Echo Show 10.
The device is envisioned as a smart home command center, videoconferencing machine and remote-controlled home security tool, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the work isn’t public. The project — codenamed J595 — was approved by Apple’s executive team in 2022 but has started to formally ramp up in recent months, they said.Mark Gurman
However, Apple plans to give its home hub a fun twist — literally. Unlike the relatively stationary home hubs that Amazon and Google offer, the Apple hub will incorporate a thin robotic arm to move a larger screen with a full 360-degree range of motion and the ability to tilt up and down.
Gurman says the device would be controlled primarily using Siri and would likely incorporate a powerful enough chip and sufficient RAM to support Apple Intelligence — something current HomePods lack. It would respond to commands such as “look at me” to reposition the screen and understand different voices. It would likely also be able to follow someone during a video call. Apple has already laid the foundation for this with the DockKit framework in iOS 17, which lets accessories like Belkin’s Stand Pro do similar things with any MagSafe iPhone.
Apple veteran executive Kevin Lynch is leading the new project. Lynch previously headed up the Apple Car team in its waning days. However, Lynch is best known for overseeing the Apple Watch and Apple’s health software engineering during its most substantial growth period. Gurman says Lynch has recruited several key members of the Apple Watch team, along with some well-known robotics researchers and engineers, to bring the device to life.
In the long term, Apple hopes to create a robot that can move around the home and has even contemplated a “humanoid version.” Robotics expert Hanns Wolfram Tappeiner is said to be pursuing this angle, with about 100 former car team engineers reporting to him.
Nevertheless, Gurman’s sources say there’s some controversy within Apple as to whether such a product needs to exist. One person described the development process as “a roller-coaster ride,” and some think it will have limited appeal and may even be redundant in a world that already includes the iPad, HomePod, and Vision Pro as distinct devices.
It’s probably no surprise that Apple’s industrial design team has been exploring robotic concepts for years, but getting buy-in from Apple’s software engineering and marketing teams has proven to be a challenge. However, insiders tell Gurman that Apple CEO Tim Cook and Senior Hardware Engineering VP John Ternus favor moving forward with such a device and are pushing the responsible teams to have something ready to debut by 2027 with a price tag in the $1,000 range.
[The information provided in this article has NOT been confirmed by Apple and may be speculation. Provided details may not be factual. Take all rumors, tech or otherwise, with a grain of salt.]
