ZeroWire Robotics Q8botOne price & specs

$199 – $599 (Crowd Supply)

Announced onlyZero wiresDYNAMIXEL servosCrowd SupplyOpen hardware

Not releasedShipping: Crowd Supply delivery est. Mar 2027.

LEARN MORE (Crowd Supply campaign) ↗

Overview

A tiny open-hardware dog with no wires and real smart servos, best for gait experiments and teaching once campaign units ship in 2027.

A palm-sized quadruped with open hardware from ZeroWire Robotics, a Cupertino, California startup run by Yufeng Wu. It grew out of his open-source Q8bot from 2024, which he later published as research at UCLA's RoMeLa lab. The robot has zero wires, meaning every part plugs straight into one central circuit board that doubles as the chassis. Eight ROBOTIS DYNAMIXEL XL330 smart servos drive the parallel-linkage legs and report position, current and temperature over a shared serial bus. An ESP32-C3 runs the robot, and two 14500 Li-ion cells power it. The body measures 120 × 70 × 70 mm and weighs 250 g.

A matching ESP32-C3 controller drives it out of the box, with a joystick, several gaits and preset moves such as jumps and dances. Plugged into a computer, the controller becomes a wireless dongle for a desktop app, an Xbox gamepad or a Python API. There are no built-in sensors, though a Qwiic port and a powered UART accept an IMU, a camera or a small co-processor. It is a sensor-free alternative to Petoi Bittle, aimed at gait experiments, teaching and tinkering. The $199 kit plus eight servos from ROBOTIS comes to about $420, so the $599 assembled robot costs roughly $180 more (estimate). Orders placed during the campaign ship in March 2027.

Type: Quadruped robot · Desktop / hobby kits
Maker: ZeroWire Robotics (USA)
Released: 2026
Price: $199 – $599 (Crowd Supply)
Status: Announced only
Best for: Ages 14+
Programming: Open source (hardware + software)

Price and shipping

The $199 kit comes without its eight DYNAMIXEL XL330-M077-T servos, which ROBOTIS US sells at $27.49 each ($219.92 for eight). The fully assembled robot is $599. Both include free worldwide shipping. No later retail price has been announced. Crowd Supply campaign page and ROBOTIS US store, checked October 2026.

Shipping: Crowd Supply delivery est. Mar 2027. Live on Crowd Supply until November 19, 2026, at $5,580 of a $10,000 goal with 20 backers on October 25. Crowd Supply says orders placed now ship March 24, 2027, with delivery handled by Mouser Electronics. Elecrow makes the boards and printed parts, and final assembly is in California. Crowd Supply ↗

Specifications

Category	Quadrupeds · Desktop / hobby kits
Released	2026
Country	USA
Availability	Announced only
Crowdfunding	Crowd Supply · Live campaign · 20 backers · $5,580 raised of a $10,000 goal · Oct 6, 2026 – Nov 19, 2026 · delivery est. Mar 2027 (as of Oct 25, 2026) Campaign ↗
Programmability	Open source (hardware + software)
Built-in autonomy	None / scripted · Moves only when controlled, or plays preset motions
LLM support	Possible via SDK · No built-in LLM. The Python API drives the robot from a computer through the controller, which acts as a wireless dongle, so an LLM running on that computer could send it commands. ZeroWire publishes no LLM tools or examples. q8botone-python (GitHub) ↗
MuJoCo simulation	None found · Nothing found.
NVIDIA Isaac simulation	None found · Nothing found.
Gazebo simulation	None found · Nothing found. The Python package ships an STL of the body for its desktop app, but no URDF.
Best for	Ages 14+ (estimated)
Vision sensors	No vision sensors
Actuators	Smart servos (Dynamixel, Feetech…)
Audio	No audio
Compute type	Arduino / ESP32 / microcontroller
Compute	ESP32-C3 (ESP32-C3-MINI-1-N4) on the main board, with a second ESP32-C3 in the handheld controller
Weight	250 g, powered by two 14500 Li-ion cells with a USB-C charger built in
Speed	Not published for Q8botOne. The original Q8bot walked at 5.4 body lengths per second in its IROS 2025 paper
DOF	8 (2 per leg, parallel-linkage legs on ball bearings), ROBOTIS DYNAMIXEL XL330-M077-T smart servos
Sensors	None built in apart from servo feedback (position, current, temperature). A Qwiic/STEMMA QT port and a powered 5 V UART take add-ons, shown with an MPU-6050 IMU, an INA228 power monitor and an ESP32 camera module
SDK	Yes. MIT-licensed firmware and a Python library with a desktop app and gamepad support are on GitHub (preliminary release, October 2026). CAD is public on Onshape, and PCB files and build guides are promised before shipping

Timeline

2024AnnouncedYufeng Wu published the original open-source Q8bot on GitHub and YouTube. Q8bot (GitHub) ↗
Oct 6, 2026Campaign launchedQ8botOne Crowd Supply campaign launched. Crowd Supply update ↗
Oct 13, 2026UpdatePreliminary firmware, Python API and desktop app published on GitHub. Crowd Supply update ↗
Nov 19, 2026 (est.)Campaign endQ8botOne Crowd Supply campaign deadline. Crowd Supply ↗
Mar 24, 2027 (est.)Estimated deliveryEstimated shipping date for campaign orders. Crowd Supply ↗

Common questions

How much does Q8botOne cost?

Q8botOne is listed at $199 – $599 (Crowd Supply). The $199 kit comes without its eight DYNAMIXEL XL330-M077-T servos, which ROBOTIS US sells at $27.49 each ($219.92 for eight). The fully assembled robot is $599. Both include free worldwide shipping. No later retail price has been announced. Crowd Supply campaign page and ROBOTIS US store, checked October 2026.

Can Q8botOne be bought today?

Not yet. It has been announced but is not on sale. Live on Crowd Supply until November 19, 2026, at $5,580 of a $10,000 goal with 20 backers on October 25. Crowd Supply says orders placed now ship March 24, 2027, with delivery handled by Mouser Electronics. Elecrow makes the boards and printed parts, and final assembly is in California.

Who makes Q8botOne?

Q8botOne is made by ZeroWire Robotics (USA). It came out in 2026.

Can Q8botOne be programmed?

Open source (hardware + software). Yes. MIT-licensed firmware and a Python library with a desktop app and gamepad support are on GitHub (preliminary release, October 2026). CAD is public on Onshape, and PCB files and build guides are promised before shipping.

Does Q8botOne have AI chat or LLM support?

Possible via SDK. No built-in LLM. The Python API drives the robot from a computer through the controller, which acts as a wireless dongle, so an LLM running on that computer could send it commands. ZeroWire publishes no LLM tools or examples.