First 100 manufacturers earn the Genesis Rank Badge
Are you with Festo?
Festo is a robotics company founded 1925, based in Germany, developing 5 robots primarily in the Research category.
Automation and bionic robotics for industrial motion control
Festo is a German automation company that develops bionic robotic concepts and industrial motion-control products. Its Bionic Learning Network includes underwater robots such as AquaPenguins, Aqua_ray, and AquaJellies 2.0, plus the flying SmartBird demonstrator, presented as research projects inspired by natural movement and used to showcase autonomy, efficiency, and lightweight design.
Company facts
- HQ
- Esslingen am Neckar, Germany
- Founded
- 1925 · 101 yrs
- Website
- www.festo.com
Robo Score
Products, Range, Traction set the number — the three factors present for every company. Momentum, Attention, Readiness describe the brand but never move it. A value we don't have reads —, never zero. Claiming or paying moves nothing.
5 of 6 factors known. How it's calculated
Milestones
Introduced SmartBird as a Bionic Learning Network flying robot demonstrator.
Showcased AquaPenguins as autonomous bionic underwater robots.
Presented AquaJelly as an autonomous jellyfish-inspired robot.
Introduced Aqua_ray as a manta ray-inspired underwater robot.
Press coverage
- FESTO's AquaJelly and AirJelly
The Robot Report
Active products by Festo
5 shown| # | Category | Key specs | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | SmartBird | Research | Top speed 6.9 m/s·Runtime 0.3 hr | 2011 | A | |
| 2 | Festo EMMT-AS Servo Motor | Actuator | — | — | BB | |
| 3 | ![]() | Aqua Penguin | Research | Payload 5 kg·Top speed 8.3 m/s | 2008 | BB |
| 4 | ![]() | Aqua Ray | Research | Top speed 0.5 m/s·Runtime 7 hr | 2008 | BB |
| 5 | Aqua Jelly | Research | — | 2008 | B |
Research & Prototype buying guides
Industry Knowledge →
The research-robot procurement RFP: questions and red flags
A structured RFP for research robot procurement covers SDK openness, ROS 2 support, spare parts, export control, and end-of-life risk. This is the checklist tha…

A 90-day playbook to stand up a new platform in a lab
Most research robot deployments fail at the handoff: the student who set it up leaves, and no one can reproduce the environment. This 90-day playbook builds rep…

Matching research robot platform to research goal
The wrong platform for a research domain creates years of friction. This domain-by-domain breakdown maps hardware categories to research goals and evaluates ROS…

