Pepper and NAO robots today: who makes them, specs and support status

Pepper and NAO, the two humanoid robots designed by Paris-based Aldebaran and long associated with SoftBank Robotics, are no longer handled by the same company. NAO is sold by Maxtronics Robotics SAS, based in Issy-les-Moulineaux, which describes itself as the former Aldebaran. Pepper has been out of production since 2020 or 2021, depending on the source. In Japan, SoftBank Robotics now offers a new version, Pepper+, available for rent only.

Who makes Pepper and NAO today

The maxtronics.com website has replaced aldebaran.com, which now permanently redirects to it. Maxtronics Robotics SAS describes itself there as the former Aldebaran. Its catalogue includes the NAO6, the NAO Activities software licence and a NAO7 project. The NAO6 is the only NAO model on sale, and Maxtronics’ technical support is “limited to NAO 6”.

Aldebaran’s assets were acquired in July 2025 by Maxvision Technology Corp., a Shenzhen company specialising in biometric authentication and video identification. According to The Robot Report and heise online, the deal covers the technology assets and intellectual property of Pepper and NAO. Maxvision announced the creation of a French subsidiary responsible for R&D and customer service. According to press reports, the robots are manufactured in China.

For Pepper, Maxtronics states that it “does not provide technical support”. The company is looking for a European partner to take over sales, repair and support for the robot. In Japan, SoftBank Robotics Japan offers Pepper+ for rent. The group website softbankrobotics.com, which presents the company as a “robot integrator”, mentions neither Pepper+ nor any current humanoid robot on its home and company pages.

From Aldebaran to Maxtronics: the ownership history

• 2005: Bruno Maisonnier founds Aldebaran in Paris (AFP).
• 2012: SoftBank takes control of Aldebaran, which is renamed SoftBank Robotics Europe (AFP). The Robot Report puts the acquisition at $100 million.
• June 2022: SoftBank Robotics Europe reverts to the Aldebaran name, according to an EMEA page on the softbankrobotics.com website. The same year, the company is acquired by Germany’s United Robotics Group, a subsidiary of the RAG-Stiftung foundation (AFP). According to TechCrunch, Aldebaran then becomes one of the group’s eight brands, and the group said it wanted to “improve our offerings for existing products like Pepper and Nao”.
• 2025: according to AFP, Aldebaran enters safeguard proceedings in January, then receivership in February. The Paris commercial court orders its compulsory liquidation on Monday 2 June 2025. Thomas Novalic, lawyer for the works council (CSE), reports 106 employees laid off. Two takeover bids had been submitted, from Jean-Marie Van Appelghem and from Malik Bachouchi. The second was ruled inadmissible.
• July 2025: the assets are put up for auction with a starting price of €500,000. According to Solutions Numériques, Maxvision acquires all the assets (patents, code, inventory) for €900,000. Maxvision announces that it will continue both product lines, with no layoffs, and that it will invest in Europe and North America (heise online). Heise online also reports concerns from universities that Pepper and NAO will no longer receive updates.

Maxtronics now describes Aldebaran and United Robotics Group as “permanently closed”. Solutions Numériques notes that RobotLAB, the long-standing distributor in the United States and South America, had bought the NAO and Pepper lines for those territories in 2020-2021. RobotLAB reportedly sold around 8,000 robots there, roughly 25% of global sales.

Pepper specifications: official data sheet

The Pepper page on the Japanese site softbank.jp, consulted on 22 October 2026, gives the following specifications.

The page states that the price “depends on the setting or field of use”. It also mentions that Pepper was named an “ambassador” by the Office for COVID-19 and Other Emerging Infectious Disease Control at Japan’s Cabinet Secretariat.

On the software side, Maxtronics’ support page details compatibility by hardware version. Pepper 1.6 and 1.7 run only NAOqi 2.5, in Python. Pepper 1.8A and 1.8 support NAOqi 2.5 and NAOqi 2.9, on Android.

Pepper history: from the 2014 launch to the end of production

The SoftBank Robotics group website presents Pepper as “our first robot”, launched in 2014. According to Reuters (July 2021), it was Masayoshi Son who launched it. Its retail price in Japan was then ¥198,000, plus ¥14,800 in monthly fees. This is a historical price, reported in 2021.

Reuters reported in June 2021, citing three sources, that SoftBank had stopped producing Pepper in 2020. AFP, for its part, places the halt “in 2021”, in an article from June 2025. According to Reuters, production took place at a Foxconn factory in China, where the line was later shut down. Reuters also reported that fewer than 2,000 units remained in stock and that sales sometimes fell below 100 units a month. The agency also cited the minutes of an internal meeting held in late May 2021, which planned an end to sales of new Pepper units by 2023. SoftBank disputed the document. Its chief marketing officer, Kazutaka Hasumi, said at the time: “We will still be selling Pepper in five years”.

Production figures vary between sources. One of Reuters’ sources mentions 27,000 Pepper units built. The Robot Report and Solutions Numériques reported in 2025 that around 17,000 Pepper units had been sold since 2014. According to TechCrunch (2022), Pepper was mainly used as a display device in airports and restaurants. In 2021, The Robot Report quoted an anonymous employee as saying that “the market for Nao and Pepper is smaller than expected”. The outlet described the Whiz vacuum cleaner as SoftBank’s new “flagship” robot at the time.

According to Japanese reports, SoftBank Robotics announced on 2 February 2026 that Guinness World Records had recognised Pepper as the first mass-produced humanoid robot.

Pepper support and services in 2026

The support section of maxtronics.com sums up Pepper’s situation. The robot was managed successively by SoftBank Robotics, Aldebaran and United Robotics Group. Maxtronics does not provide technical support for it. There is no official Pepper support centre in Europe.

Maxtronics announced the end of Pepper’s cloud services on 1 October 2026. Until that date, apps remained available for download from the Aldebaran app store.

Pepper+ price: the new rental offer in Japan

SoftBank Robotics announced Pepper+ on 2 February 2026, according to GIGAZINE. SoftBank Robotics Japan’s product page presents it as a “NEW MODEL”. It highlights more natural movements, a new tablet and AI features. These include a reception agent able to recognise customers’ clothing and facial expressions, apps for impromptu photography, musical performances and quizzes, and apps for care facilities.

GIGAZINE reports that the AI reception agent is already available, while the other apps are “in development”. The outlet cites tourism, healthcare and care services as target sectors. It also lists the robot’s sensors:

• Head: touch sensor, microphone, 2D camera and 3D sensor.
• Body: gyroscope, hand touch sensors, infrared, laser, sonar and bumpers.

Pepper+ is available for rent only, with no purchase price. SoftBank Robotics Japan’s official rates are as follows:

• “AI活用” retail plan: ¥79,800 per month, plus a ¥9,800 initial fee, with a one-year commitment.
• Short-term plan: ¥150,000 for a one-month rental, plus a ¥9,800 initial fee. Extensions cost ¥5,000 per day.
• Care facility plan: from ¥39,800 per month, plus a ¥120,000 initial fee, for a minimum of one year.

Maintenance is included in the monthly payments. Content for the AI reception agent and delivery and collection are billed separately. The usual setup time is three to four weeks. Installation requires a network connection, a flat, hard floor with no slopes or steps, a clear radius of at least 90 cm, and indoor use.

NAO6 price and package: the only NAO on sale

The NAO6 is sold by Maxtronics. Its price is not published: it is quoted on request, according to the company’s pricing page as seen in captures dated 31 March 2026. The package described on that page includes the following items.

Maxtronics’ claims on NAO sales and use

The Maxtronics website states that more than 20,000 NAO robots have been “produced, sold and delivered”. It also claims more than 3,600 studies conducted with the robot and use in more than 70 countries, with more than 30 international partners. Press figures are in the same range: The Robot Report and Solutions Numériques cite around 20,000 NAO units sold since 2005. The site menu mentions a “NAO7 project”, with no date or details. Solutions Numériques wrote in September 2025 that a NAO7 was planned for 2026, without confirmation from Maxvision.

NAO Activities software, accessories and services: prices

Maxtronics’ pricing page, with euro prices excluding VAT recorded from captures dated 31 March 2026, details the offer around the robot:

• “NAO Activities” generative AI licence: based on OpenAI’s ChatGPT and compatible only with the NAO6, from €990 excl. VAT per year, with a one-month free trial.
• K12 education kit: on request.
• Transport case: from €399 excl. VAT.
• Spare battery: from €299 excl. VAT.
• White charger: from €80 excl. VAT.
• One-year warranty extension: from €990 excl. VAT.
• Half-day NAO Activities training (3 hours, in Issy-les-Moulineaux): from €490 excl. VAT.

What we do not know yet

• Purchase price: there is no public price for the NAO6, which is quoted on request, nor for Pepper+, nor for a used Pepper. The softbank.jp page does not say whether Pepper is still on sale.
• Production: the actual state of Pepper and NAO6 production under Maxvision and Maxtronics is unknown. The legal relationship between Maxtronics Robotics SAS and the French subsidiary announced by Maxvision is not documented. Reuters dates the end of Pepper production to 2020, AFP to 2021.
• Sale price: the €900,000 figure paid by Maxvision appears only in Solutions Numériques.
• Volumes: Pepper figures differ between the 27,000 units built cited by one Reuters source and the 17,000 units sold reported by the press in 2025. For NAO, the available figures are manufacturer claims or press estimates.
• NAO7: neither its date nor its existence as a product has been confirmed.
• NAO6 specifications: only the operating temperature range is established.
• Pepper+: SoftBank Robotics Japan does not publish dimensions, weight, battery life or a release date. It is not known who manufactures it or whether it will be offered outside Japan. The available sensor list comes from GIGAZINE.
• Pepper support in Europe: no partner has been named to take over sales, repair and support. Maxtronics says it is looking for one.
• SoftBank Robotics and humanoid robots: no humanoid strategy appears in the group’s publications.

See also: SoftBank Robotics, from Pepper to service robots · Can you buy a SoftBank robot, Pepper or NAO? · Educational robots: uses and models