Which Humanoid Robots Can Actually Cook? Six Compared for 2026

Robbyant R1 ranks first because it has shown real heat cooking and is already being tested in working kitchens. Ant Group's robot unit, Robbyant, had R1 stir-fry garlic shrimp at the IFA 2025 show in Berlin, and Ant is testing it in restaurants and community centres. Ant says R1's AI plans and runs the whole kitchen job itself, adapts to different layouts and can learn new recipes over time. It has two arms with 34 degrees of freedom on a 110 kg wheeled base that moves at up to 1.5 metres per second, and it can run for about 8 hours. The limits: the autonomy claims are Ant's own words, and R1 is aimed at commercial kitchens rather than homes. It suits restaurants, canteens and food courts that want to watch a robot kitchen hand at work.

Astribot S1 ranks second because its cooking moves are the most skilled we found. Reporters have seen it flip food in a pan, brew Kung Fu tea through a long run of steps and serve it, alongside folding clothes and stacking cups. Each arm carries 5 kg, and the hands can move at up to 10 metres per second, which is why its motions look so quick. It stands 170 cm tall on a wheeled base that turns in any direction. The limits are plain: one report notes that demos may be shown at 3 to 10 times normal speed and that real-world performance still has to be proved, and the cooking was shown in controlled settings. It suits labs, shops and showrooms that need fast two-arm work around food and drink.

Atom ranks third because Dobot has put a full, easy-to-judge cooking video on show. In it, Atom toasts bread and handles lettuce and cherries to build a healthy breakfast. Dobot, a maker of robot arms since 2015, says Atom runs on its Robot Operator Model-1 AI, and the arms hold a repeatability of 0.05 mm, which is the fine control that plating and picking soft food needs. It walks on two legs, stands 153 cm tall and weighs 62 kg. The limits: the breakfast is light work with no hot pan, Dobot has not named a target market, and the catalog lists a run time of about 2 hours. It suits teams that want a walking robot for light food prep and plating rather than heavy kitchen work.

Panther ranks fourth because UniX AI says it cooks and cleans, and reports say it is already being tested in real homes and service sites, but the public cooking detail is thin. A report calls it a home humanoid that can prepare breakfast or meals, clean rooms, organize items and run some appliances, though it names no recipe. Panther rolls on a base that turns in any direction, has 360-degree LiDAR and ultrasonic sensors, and each arm lifts up to 12 kg. It can run for 8 to 16 hours on a charge, the longest here. The limit is proof: we found no clip of a full dish. It suits homes and service sites that want a long-running helper and can wait for more cooking evidence.

CloiD ranks fifth because LG has described its cooking routine more than it has proved it. At CES 2026, LG planned to show CloiD taking milk from the fridge and putting a croissant in the oven to make breakfast, using LG's connected home system to work the appliances. CloiD has two arms on a wheeled self-driving base, and its height adjusts from 105 cm to 143 cm so it can reach both low shelves and counters. LG says it runs on an AI model trained on household task data. The limits: the plan is two simple steps, the report does not say how much was autonomous, and LG has not set a launch date. It suits people who already live in an LG connected kitchen and can wait.

NEO ranks last because its best cooking clip was not autonomous, even though it is the only robot here you can order today. In a video with the chef Nick DiGiovanni, a 1X staff member controlled the robot from a distance while it fried steaks and basted them with butter, and it still needed help turning on the burner. 1X has said it will not switch on autonomous cooking for its first customers, who start with simpler chores. NEO stands about 167 cm tall, weighs 29.94 kg and runs for about 4 hours on its 842 Wh battery. The limit is clear: cooking is a future goal, not a feature. It suits early home adopters who want a household helper first and are happy to wait for the kitchen skills.