🌐 Pollen Robotics

About Pollen Robotics

Pollen Robotics was founded in Bordeaux, France in 2016 by a team of roboticists and software engineers with a clear mission: make humanoid robotics accessible to researchers and educators worldwide. Rather than pursuing closed, proprietary platforms, the company built its entire product line around open-source principles, publishing hardware designs, firmware, and control software under permissive licences.

The company's flagship creation, Reachy 2, is an open-source humanoid upper body designed from the ground up for research, education, and human-robot interaction studies. The platform features expressive head movements, articulated arms with dexterous grippers, and a Python-based SDK that lowers the barrier to entry for teams without deep embedded-systems expertise. Pollen's approach has earned it a growing community of contributors and academic collaborators across Europe and North America.

Pollen Robotics has participated in European robotics challenges and maintains active partnerships with universities and research institutes. The company remains privately held and focused on the research and education segment rather than competing directly in industrial automation markets.

Key Products

• Reachy 2: open-source humanoid upper body with expressive head, dual articulated arms, and a Python SDK; primary platform for research and HRI studies
• Orbita actuator: proprietary spherical joint actuator used in Reachy's head and neck, enabling smooth omnidirectional movement
• Pollen SDK: open Python library for controlling Reachy, with ROS 2 integration and simulation support via Gazebo

UK Market Presence

Pollen Robotics sells Reachy 2 internationally, including to UK universities and research labs, typically through direct purchase or academic procurement channels. The price point sits in the mid five-figure GBP range, positioning it as a serious research instrument rather than a consumer product. Several UK HRI research groups have deployed Reachy units for studies in social robotics and assistive technology.

Buying Used Pollen Robotics Equipment

The secondhand market for Reachy units is small but growing as early adopters upgrade to newer revisions. Expect to find units on university surplus listings or specialist robotics marketplaces at roughly 40-60% of original cost, often in the £15,000 to £30,000 range depending on configuration and condition. When buying used, verify that all Orbita actuators are responsive and free from grinding, check the SDK version compatibility, and confirm that the onboard compute module boots correctly. Because the platform is open-source, software support is community-driven rather than tied to manufacturer licence renewals, which reduces long-term risk for secondhand buyers.