HumanoidsShipyard welding humanoid
Persona AI humanoid
by Persona AI
Persona AI, a Houston start-up founded in 2024, is building a tough two-legged humanoid robot for shipyards, meant to weld and repair ship hulls in tight spaces. It is still being developed. Interesting Engineering, 23 Mar 2026
- Evidence
- No customer evidence yet
- Human help
- Not disclosed
- Last milestone
- 14 Sept 2026
01Can I get it?
Not yet
- Where it works today
- Not working anywhere yet. Shipbuilder HD Hyundai plans to install and test the robots at its shipyards. Korea JoongAng Daily, 8 May 2025
- Published price
- No published price in our sources.
- Human help
- The maker hasn't said whether people help it remotely.
02Track record
What has actually happened
Every milestone is dated and links to the page it comes from. Lines marked company-reported rest on the maker's own word.
03Promised vs delivered
What the maker said, and when
Dated targets the maker set in public, against what has happened since.
- Said14 May 2025
First robots delivered to shipyards within 18 months
Persona AI said its first humanoid robots would be delivered to shipyards within 18 months. Persona AI press release, 14 May 2025
Still pendingNo delivery reported by October 2026; in March 2026 the plan was a prototype by late 2026.
- Said8 May 2025
Prototype humanoids by end of 2026
HD Hyundai and Persona AI said prototype welding humanoids would be ready by the end of 2026. HD Hyundai and Persona AI press release, 8 May 2025
Still pendingStill the target in March 2026, when the prototype passed a feasibility check.
- Said8 May 2025
Field testing and commercial use in 2027
The partners said field testing and full commercial use in shipyards would begin in 2027. HD Hyundai and Persona AI press release, 8 May 2025
Still pending
04Safety and incidents
What has gone wrong
No crashes, recalls or regulator reports in our sources. That is not proof none happened; we add them when a regulator or trusted outlet reports one.
How we placed it
The rule, not an opinion
Stages are worked out by published rules from the dated milestones above. We never rate robots, and no maker can pay to change a stage.
- 5
Regulator-cleared or mass market
A regulator has cleared it where approval applies: FDA clearance or approval for a medical robot, a permit to run with no one aboard for a self-driving vehicle, or an FAA approval for routine drone flights. Or: Widely sold: sales in the hundreds of thousands, or a product category you can buy in ordinary shops.
- 4
Paying customers
Delivered to customers who pay for it, beyond a trial, or a paid service the public can use.
- 3
Pilot
Working with a named customer in a real setting, as a trial.
- 2
Pre-orders
Orders, reservations or deposits taken, with nothing delivered yet.
- 1
Demo onlyThis robot
Shown in videos, staged events or a factory, with no units working for customers.
No pre-order, pilot, paying customer or clearance is on record yet.
What we couldn't confirm. We found no public demo of a finished robot. How much the robot will work on its own versus under remote control has not been stated.
Sources
- 01Interesting Engineering, 23 Mar 2026
- 02Korea JoongAng Daily, 8 May 2025
- 03Runtime Wire, citing SEC Form D, 14 Sept 2026
- 04The Maritime Executive, 23 Mar 2026
- 05Digital Ship, 29 Sept 2025
- 06Persona AI press release, 14 May 2025
- 07HD Hyundai and Persona AI press release, 8 May 2025
Cite this page
Robotics Verdict. “Persona AI humanoid (Persona AI): how far has it got?” roboticsverdict.com/robots/persona-ai. Checked 19 October 2026.