Misty I developer edition robot drops

Misty Robotics, the personal robot company spun out from Sphero, and the creators of the BB-8 toy robot, just announced the limited availability of the Misty I Developer Edition prototype robot and software tools. The robot will be made available to a select group of developers and inventors who will help create useful skills for the next generation robot, Misty II, coming later in 2018. The Misty I Developer Edition robot will begin shipping next month and is priced at $1499.

“We believe that by creating an affordable and highly programmable robot for developers first, we can accelerate towards a future of helpful personal robots in our homes and offices,” said Ian Bernstein, Founder and Head of Product, Misty Robotics. “The Misty I Developer Edition robot and APIs provide developers and inventors with everything they need to create the ‘killer app’ for personal robots and we look forward to working closely with the community to see what they invent.”

The Misty I Developer Edition prototype provides non-robotics programmers simple but powerful tools and capabilities, allowing them to leverage APIs for autonomous navigation, seeing, hearing, and speaking capabilities of the robot. Developers who purchase the Misty I will be able to dive in quickly with a Blockly GUI and/or code using Javascript. The mobile companion app will enable control and map interaction. The Misty I will also include serial and USB ports that will encourage makers to enhance and extend their robots with new hardware.

“By creating and fostering a strong developer community, we expect to enable tens of thousands of useful skills for the Misty personal robots at a consumer-friendly price,“ said Ben Edwards, who was recently brought on as Head of Community. Before joining Misty Robotics, Edwards founded SmartThings, the hardware and software platform that makes it easy to turn homes into smart homes. He helped grow the SmartThings community to more than 50,000 IoT enthusiasts. “We’re very excited to discover and cultivate the many ways people will create, innovate, and extend these robots and the platform in their own homes and offices.”