Robot dogs for building rounds: what they do well, where they stop, and what they cost.
What can a robot dog do on building rounds? A four-legged robot steps over thresholds, crosses rough ground and, on many bodies, climbs stairs, taking a photo at each point. Without an arm it cannot open most doors or press lift buttons, and battery life limits each round. Research bodies are published at about $1,600 to $19,000, industrial bodies at about $15,000 to $107,000.
| Type | Published price | What it is for |
|---|---|---|
| Research and developer bodies | About $1,600 to $19,000 | Labs, developers and pilots. Software, sensors and support are mostly up to you |
| Industrial bodies | About $15,000 to $107,000, through resellers | Plants and sites that need tougher hardware. Sensor payloads and support are extra |
| An industrial body with an arm, sensors and support | About $213,000 to $340,000, in recent US city budgets | Inspection and public-safety work with a full payload |
| Cereal's robot, as a founding-site pilot | $1,250 USD a month per robot, with the robot, Cereal OS, Cole, setup and support | Supervised walks of your site today, with rounds on its own next |
Prices are for the body before integration. Sensor payloads, docking stations, software and support can add a lot.
Sources: Robozaps (July 2026: developer bodies $1,600 to $18,900; industrial bodies about $15,199 to $106,500 through resellers); Hoodline (March 2026: a city's proposed purchase, base model $98,955, $213,257 with equipment); KWCH (April 2026: a city's purchase, $340,000).
Legs go where wheels stop.
Legs are the reason to choose a robot dog over a wheeled robot:
- Thresholds, cables, kerbs and uneven floors that stop small wheels.
- Stairs, on many bodies, where a site approves the route.
- Gravel, grass and site paths in good weather.
- The same route walked the same way each time, with a photo from the same spot.
What a robot dog cannot do.
Be clear about these before a pilot, because they decide what a person still has to do:
- Without an arm, it cannot open most doors, press lift buttons or pass a badge reader. Doors and lifts need help or a separate integration.
- It does not carry things in any useful way.
- Battery life is measured in hours, not shifts, so a charging spot or a battery swap is part of the plan.
- Rain, heat, dust and hazardous areas need hardware rated for them. Ours is not rated for heavy rain, extreme heat or hazardous areas.
- It cannot respond to what it finds. A person decides what happens next.
A person responsible, and more than one way to stop it.
Any robot that walks near people needs a named person responsible for it, an agreed route and speed, and a stop that works from wherever that person is. Today our robot, a four-legged body running Cereal OS, walks a route with a person beside it. It follows them, comes when called, learns places by the names they give them and, when asked, says what it sees and sends a photo. There are three ways to stop it: its handheld remote, the Stop button on its live page, or asking Cole.
Agree what it may see before it takes a step.
Agree which areas are in scope, who can open its live view and what is kept. Ours shows its live view only to people the site allows, watching never gives control, every link you share expires within an hour, and private rooms stay out of scope.
Buy the body, or pay for the service.
Buying the body is only the start: a site also pays for sensors, mapping, software, support and someone's time to run it. A monthly subscription bundles most of that, and lets a site stop if the pilot does not prove useful.
Our founding-site pilot is $1,250 USD a month per robot in the US, or ฿29,900 a month in Thailand, with no setup fee for founding sites, for 90 days. Pilots start in Thailand and the US from early 2027.
The practical details.
How much does a robot dog cost?
Research and developer bodies are published at about $1,600 to $19,000, and industrial bodies at about $15,000 to $107,000 through resellers, before sensors, software and support. In recent US city budgets, a fully equipped industrial robot cost about $213,000 to $340,000.
Can a robot dog open doors or use lifts?
Not without an arm or an integration. Most robot dogs cannot open a door, press a lift button or pass a badge reader, so staff or a building integration handle doors and lifts.
Can a robot dog climb stairs?
Many bodies can. Whether a robot should use a given staircase is a site decision, tested on that staircase with a person present before it is approved.
Can a robot dog patrol a building on its own?
Some are sold for scheduled patrols. Ours does not patrol on its own yet: today a person walks with it, and rounds on its own come next, tested with a person present first.
Is a robot dog a security guard?
No. It can check and record, but it cannot respond, de-escalate or detain. A person stays responsible for what happens next.
Can it work outdoors or in the rain?
It depends on the body's rating. Ours is not rated for heavy rain or extreme heat, so outdoor pilots start on dry, paved routes in daylight.
What does Cereal's robot do today?
Today our robot, a four-legged body running Cereal OS, walks a route with a person beside it. It follows them, comes when called, learns places by the names they give them and, when asked, says what it sees and sends a photo. There are three ways to stop it: its handheld remote, the Stop button on its live page, or asking Cole. It does not walk rounds on its own yet, carry things, open doors or call lifts, and it does not replace a guard, a carer or an alarm.