One of Amazon’s most audacious Alexa devices—a wheeled robot that acts as a mechanical guard dog for small- and medium-sized businesses—is heading for the recycle bin.
Astro for Business, the commercial version of the Alexa-powered Astro robot, will cease functioning on September 25, a victim of Amazon’s shifting priorities for its consumer robotic division, GeekWire reports.
Owners of the $2,350 Astro for Business bot will get full refunds, along with a $300 credit to “help support a replacement solution for your workplace,” according to Amazon emails sent to customers.
As for the robot itself, Amazon is telling businesses to go ahead and recycle it.
Meanwhile, Amazon Astro for consumers appears alive and well—or at least, as well as can be expected, given that the robot has languished in an invite-only “Day 1” limbo since its 2021 debut.
Reached for comment, an Amazon spokesperson confirmed the news, adding that the company chose to “wind down” Astro for Business to “accelerate our progress and ongoing research to make Astro the best in-home robot.”
Amazon Astro ranks as one of the company’s wildest device offerings—and that’s saying something, given that Amazon’s Ring brand offers a flying security camera for homes (which itself is still stuck in invite-only status).
The two-wheeled Astro first took the stage during Amazon’s fall 2021 hardware event, and it packs an Alexa smart display, a periscope-mounted HD camera, and a bevy of sensors to help it navigate.
A little more than two years after Astro was first unveiled, Amazon announced Astro for Business, a commercial-minded version of Astro designed to patrol business, record surveillance footage, and even summon authorities if it detected intruders.
With its eye-watering $2,350 price tag plus service fees as high as $179 a month, Astro for Business was quite an investment. Astro for consumers, on the other hand, costs only (only?) $1,599—that is, if you can wrangle an invite.
Invite requests for the home version of Astro “remain strong,” according to Amazon’s email to TechHive, with the company adding that it’s “received valuable feedback from customers which has informed several new Astro features and performance enhancements.”
Updated shortly after publication with a correction: Amazon Astro for homes was first unveiled during Amazon’s 2021 hardware event, not in 2011. Our apologies for the error.
Author: Ben Patterson, Senior Writer, TechHive
Ben has been writing about technology and consumer electronics for more than 20 years. A PCWorld contributor since 2014, Ben joined TechHive in 2019, where he has covered everything from smart speakers and soundbars to smart lights and security cameras. Ben's articles have also appeared in PC Magazine, TIME, Wired, CNET, Men's Fitness, Mobile Magazine, and more. Ben holds a master's degree in English literature.