The owner's manual for the robot age
ShinyMetal follows the robots that are heading for your home: what they can do, what they cost, and whether the company behind them keeps its word.
Almost nobody owns a home humanoid yet. Companies are announcing, demoing and taking deposits, and the news is a mix of real progress, careful marketing and rumor. We sort it. Every story and every spec carries a label that says how sure anyone can be.
How we label claims
The word is the signal. The color and glyph only confirm it, so the label reads the same in print and for readers who don't see color.
- ShippedCustomers have it.
- PreorderMoney taken, nothing delivered yet.
- PromiseThe company said it will happen.
- RumorUnconfirmed; see the confidence meter.
- ResearchA lab result, not a product.
Rumors also carry a confidence rating from 0 to 100. We explain the number in the story: who reported it, how many independent sources agree, and what would confirm it.
Robot status
Each robot in the database has one status, backed by a dated source in the reality tracker.
- Internal onlyDemos and the maker's own sites only.
- AnnouncedRevealed, but no one can order it.
- PreorderTaking deposits or reservations.
- ShippingBuyers (often businesses or labs) receive units.
- In homesVerified in consumer homes.
- DiscontinuedCancelled, shelved or the maker shut down.
The legal layer
For each robot we note whether it holds US FCC equipment authorization. On 28 July 2026 the FCC added foreign-made mobile robots over 2 kg (4.4 lb) to its Covered List, so new models from outside the US can't be authorized. Models approved before that date can still be sold. We also note known security flaws, and whether a remote human operator can drive the robot inside your home. A dash or "unknown" means the maker hasn't said and we couldn't verify it.
The promise ledger
When a company says something will happen by a date, we log it with the source. When the date arrives we mark it kept, slipped or broken, and we link what actually happened. The ledger is the long memory the robot industry doesn't keep for itself.
Sources and corrections
- Every story lists its sources at the end. We link to primary sources (company releases, papers, filings) wherever they exist.
- We quote companies exactly and decode the quote in plain words underneath.
- Some drafting is assisted by AI research agents. Every fact must carry a source link before it publishes.
- Generated images are labeled as illustrations in their captions. We never present a generated image as a photo of a real product.
- Found a mistake? Email tips@shinymetal.bot. We fix errors and note the correction.
Independence
We don't sell robots, and no maker pays for coverage. When we later add affiliate links or sponsors, the disclosure will sit next to the link, not in a footer.
What's coming
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