Figurobot Launches FR-NIA: A 11-inch Bionic AI Companion Robot Bringing Intelligent Interaction into Everyday Life

Combining precision biomimetic facial expressions, multimodal AI, and personalized interaction, FR-NIA is now live on Kickstarter, with limited early-bird pricing starting at $599.

Shanghai, Oct. 19, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Figurobot has officially launched FR-NIA, a 11-inch desktop bionic AI companion robot. Featuring a highly integrated biomimetic face, multimodal artificial intelligence, and personalized interaction capabilities, FR-NIA brings AI beyond screens and voice-based devices, introducing expressive facial movements and natural responses into everyday life.

FR-NIA is now live on Kickstarter in three configurations—Lite, Pro, and Pro Max—with limited early-bird pricing starting at $599.
Unlike conventional AI assistants that primarily rely on voice or screen-based responses, FR-NIA uses multimodal perception to detect users’ positions, sound direction, and interaction context. It responds through coordinated eye, eyebrow, and mouth movements, creating a more direct, intuitive, and natural interaction experience.

From Digital Interaction to Physical Companionship: Giving AI a More Expressive Presence
FR-NIA focuses on everyday companionship and personalized interaction rather than complex physical tasks. Standing just 11-inch tall, it fits naturally on desks, bedside tables, and other personal spaces, allowing users to interact face-to-face with a physically present AI companion.
FR-NIA features a highly integrated biomimetic facial design, incorporating precision motion mechanisms within an approximately 9-centimeter facial structure. With 10 expressive degrees of freedom across its face and neck, the robot is covered with a layer of biomimetic silicone just 2 millimeters thick, providing a realistic, skin-like appearance and tactile feel.

Its precision motion control system achieves a control accuracy of 0.01 degrees, enabling subtle, coordinated movements of the eyes, eyebrows, and mouth.
The value of these technologies extends beyond hardware specifications to the interaction experience itself. During conversations, FR-NIA combines perceptual information with interaction context to deliver expressive facial responses, allowing AI communication to move beyond text and voice alone.
Users can also customize FR-NIA’s appearance, personality, and expressive style. Planned memory and relationship-development features aim to maintain continuity across repeated interactions, allowing the robot to gradually adapt to individual communication preferences and deliver a more personalized experience.

By integrating intelligent perception, biomimetic facial expressions, and personalized interaction, FR-NIA aims to explore a more natural approach to personal AI communication, bringing an expressive robotic companion into everyday life. More information about FR-NIA is avaliable here.

Technology and Ecosystem Development Supporting FR-NIA
FR-NIA builds on Figurobot’s long-standing experience in robotics development. Founder Jim Lu entered the robotics industry in 2002 and established Figurobot in 2024. The company’s proprietary miniature torque joints have undergone 18 years of technological refinement, achieving advances in high power density, low-noise operation, and compliant force control. These developments provide a technical foundation for the company’s desktop humanoid robotics research and development.
Beyond FR-NIA, Figurobot previously developed a 60cm desktop humanoid robot with 27 DoF, powered by 27 proprietary miniature torque-controlled servo actuators. The robot can smoothly perform coordinated full-body movements, including walking, turning, squatting, and dancing. It also supports intelligent interaction, motion programming, and customizable appearances and personalities.

Built on independently developed hardware structures, control algorithms, and customization ecosystems, the two product lines focus on different areas: FR-NIA emphasizes biomimetic interaction and personalized companionship, while the 60-centimeter humanoid focuses on whole-body motion control. Together, they demonstrate Figurobot’s broader technological capabilities and product strategy in desktop embodied AI.
Figurobot is building a commercial ecosystem around four pillars: Hardware + Soul + Content + Accessories. By continuously expanding AI personalization capabilities, interactive content, and customizable appearances and accessories, Figurobot aims to create a physical AI and a new hardware gateway connecting AI agents with the real world.

FR-NIA Now Live on Kickstarter: Limited Early-Bird Pricing Starts at $599
FR-NIA is now available on Kickstarter in three configurations—Lite, Pro, and Pro Max—welcoming support from tech gadget enthusiasts, AI enthusiasts, and geeks worldwide. Limited early-bird pricing starts at $599. Explore FR-NIA on Kickstarter. 
With FR-NIA entering the global market, Figurobot is bringing its long-standing expertise in robotic motion control and multimodal AI into consumer products. By combining mature biomimetic technologies with an open DIY ecosystem, the company aims to push beyond the boundaries of conventional smart hardware and bring desktop humanoid robots out of laboratory demonstrations and into everyday life—empowering users to shape and personalize their own AI companions of the future.

Corey Wang
support@figurobot.com