Startup 'ROBOTS' Spun Out from NTT Docomo Group's New Business Creation Program 'docomo STARTUP' Aims for Social Implementation of Robot Integrated Control Technology

NTT Docomo, Inc. (hereinafter referred to as Docomo) has spun out a startup 'ROBOTS' (pronounced Robots, hereinafter referred to as ROBOTS) through the new business creation program 'docomo STARTUP®' of the Docomo Group, which was proposed by its employees. The startup conducts research and development of a robot integrated control platform and physical AI. The representative director and CEO of ROBOTS Inc. is Koichi Kouno, an employee of Docomo, and the director and CTO is Keigo Fujieda, and the business will start on Wednesday, July 15, 2026.

Incubate Fund Inc. (headquartered in Minato-ku, Tokyo) and Docomo will invest in ROBOTS.

The first target of ROBOTS is the security field. The security industry is facing a severe labor shortage due to harsh working environments, resulting in high turnover rates and an aging workforce. Maintaining security quality and sustainable business operations are major challenges for the industry. In response to these challenges, the industry is strengthening recruitment and improving workplace environments, as well as advancing labor-saving measures through the use of digital technology. Among these, security robots that take on patrols and monitoring, which have traditionally been performed by humans, are expected to directly reduce the burden on the field.

ROBOTS aims to combine robots, arms, and various sensors according to the challenges of the field, enabling a wide range of tasks that were previously difficult for conventional robots, such as moving up and down stairs and confirming locking, thereby contributing to labor-saving and reducing the burden on security personnel.

At the core of this is the unique 'robot integrated control platform'. The tasks required by the field vary greatly from one field to another, and it is difficult for a single robot to respond to all of them. On the other hand, the method of individually developing dedicated machines for each task is not easy to follow the ever-changing field. ROBOTS' 'robot integrated control platform' is a system that connects robots, arms, and various sensors from different manufacturers and models into a single platform and controls them as an integrated system. It not only manages the operation of each robot but also controls the combination of actions at the operational level, such as coordinating movement by a walking robot and object manipulation by an arm. By combining off-the-shelf high-performance robots in the right place, it can respond to a wide range of field challenges in a short period of time and at a low cost compared to developing a dedicated machine from scratch. Furthermore, it continues to evolve as a platform that becomes 'smarter the more it works in the field' by utilizing data obtained through field operations. This 'robot integrated control platform' will undergo demonstration experiments with partner companies this year and aims for commercialization by fiscal 2027 after verifying the results.

In the future, ROBOTS also aims to expand into other fields such as equipment inspection and maintenance, construction, and civil engineering, utilizing the knowledge of robot control and field introduction accumulated in the security field. Under the philosophy of 'creating a society where humans and robots collaborate', ROBOTS will continue to advance the social implementation of robot services and the research and development of physical AI by utilizing data and operational know-how obtained in the field to continuously enhance robot integrated control technology and expand what can be done in the field.

Docomo will continue to create new value and strive to create businesses that change society through 'docomo STARTUP'.