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actualrobot

Build a robotics lab at home, and learn it by doing.

Actual Robot is a workspace for your gear and experiments, a ten-lesson course that ends with a working rover, and an AI lab helper that suggests what to try next.

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How it works

One place for the lab you have, the skills you're learning and the experiments in between.

  1. List what's on your bench

    Record each piece of equipment by its exact model, with what it can do, what it cost and where its manual lives.

  2. Work through the course

    Ten hands-on lessons take you from a camera on the table to a rover that maps a room and does a real job.

  3. Keep a lab notebook

    Plan each experiment with a question, a method and how you'll know it worked. Write down what happened and where the recordings are.

  4. Check in with the helper

    The AI lab helper reads your lab and suggests equipment updates, experiments and what to build next. Nothing changes until you approve it.

What you'll learn

The course follows one example lab: an NVIDIA Jetson, a RealSense depth camera and an AgileX LIMO rover. Each lesson ends with something you can check on the bench.

Bench

A computer and a depth camera on the table.

  1. Your first workspaceFree preview

    Make room to build. A clear table and the right connections are enough to start.

    20–30 min

  2. Bring the Jetson to life

    Boot your computer and collect the details that make the next installation straightforward.

    30–60 min

  3. See, record, replay

    Capture a small scene, then reopen it. This is your first experiment you can repeat.

    45–90 min

Build

Unpack the rover, drive it, and read its data.

  1. Equip the lab for LIMO

    Check what the new robot brings, then buy only what your lab is missing.

    30–45 min

  2. Drive LIMO for the first time

    Learn the motion mode, verify stopping, then repeat a short indoor route.

    2–3 sessions

  3. Read the robot’s ROS 2 data

    Follow messages from the actual sensors and connect those readings to what you see.

    1–2 sessions

Rover

Map a room and mount your own sensor.

  1. Map one room

    Turn a familiar room into a map you can save, reload, and check against reality.

    2–3 sessions

  2. Print a mount, add a view

    Measure a small fixture, print it, and save a useful view while the robot moves.

    2–3 sessions

Field

Point the robot at a job worth doing.

  1. Make an inspection report

    Use an indoor inspection route to create evidence another person can review.

    1–2 sessions

  2. Find a useful real-world task

    Try the complete task indoors, survey a real site, and let measured needs guide what you build next.

    2–3 visits

Read lesson 1Lessons 2 to 10, the exercises and saved progress come with a free account.

Free and Pro

Start on Free. Move to Pro when you want more from the helper.

  • Free

    $0No card needed

    Check in on your lab with the helper each month.

    • The lab workspace and all ten lessons, with your progress saved
    • Lab check-ins with the helper
    • The first 3 lessons tailored to your equipment
    • 2 lab check-ins a month
    • 40 helper messages a month
    • 3 tailored lessons a month
    • 5 lab gap analyses a month

  • Pro

    Coming soonPro isn't available to buy yet.

    The full lab helper: chat, tailored lessons and equipment autofill.

    • Everything in Free
    • Lab check-ins with the helper
    • Helper chat in your lab and lessons
    • Lessons and project plans tailored to your equipment
    • Equipment autofill from a product link
    • 300 helper messages a month
    • Lab check-ins, tailored lessons and lab gap analyses with no set monthly count (a monthly AI usage cap applies)

Compare plans and monthly limits

Clear a table. Start with lesson 1.

Create a free account to save your progress and keep your lab in one place.

Start freePreview lesson 1