Samsung shelves Ballie home robot after six years of promises and CES demonstrations

Samsung squashes hopes that it will release its Ballie home robot

Since 2020, Samsung has been dangling a yellow ball in front of us. That sphere is a robot named Ballie that Samsung has teased and demoed for home use, including serving as a smart speaker. Today, Ballie is confirmed to be facing an eternity as vaporware. At CES 2020, Ars Technica reported that Ballie was "the furthest-along concept" that Samsung demonstrated. At the time, we saw Ballie use facial recognition to follow its owner. A marketing video also portrayed the robot controlling smart home devices, including activating a smart vacuum when someone made a mess. Ballie rolled back onto the trade show scene at CES 2024. This time, it had a new, more spherical, and larger build rolling upon its three wheels. Ballie also sported a light ring, and Samsung showed a video of the robot being used as a projector. The South Korean firm claimed that Ballie would provide "two to three hours of continued projector use" before needing a charge. Samsung's video also demontrated Ballie connecting with a smartphone. Come CES 2025, Samsung was giving limited Ballie demos of the robot doing things like sending directions to a phone and making wine recommendations. At the show, Samsung said Ballie would be available for purchase sometime that year. In April, Samsung announced that it would sell the robot in the US and South Korea in the summer of 2025. "Available to consumers this summer, Ballie will be able to engage in natural, conversational interactions to help users manage home environments, including adjusting lighting, greeting people at the door, personalizing schedules, setting reminders, and more," the press release said, pointing to the robot's implementation of Google Gemini. It's now 2026, and Ballie still hasn't come out. Bloomberg reported today that the device has been "indefinitely shelved." The publication noted that a company spokesperson called Ballie an "active innovation platform" for internal use, which is noticeably different from referring to it as a gadget that people will eventually be able to buy. "After multiple years of real-world testing, it continues to inform how Samsung designs spatially aware, context-driven experiences, particularly in areas like smart home intelligence, ambient AI and privacy-by-design," a Samsung spokesperson said in a statement to Bloomberg. The website for registering to "get the chance to be the first to meet Ballie" is still up, and it's possible that Samsung could still release Ballie. But for now, Samsung may not be confident that Ballie will consistently deliver its advertised features over a long period and/or drum up enough interest from people who can pay the likely high price for a home robot. With many technology companies rethinking their approaches to chatbots, AI in smart speakers, and home robots, Samsung may have decided it was more prudent to extract features from Ballie for use in other products. Ballie likely requires deeper exploration around how it can be more useful and reliable before Samsung goes to market -- if it ever does.

Samsung's Ballie robot is probably never coming out

Samsung's spherical Ballie robot may be rolling off into the sunset, less than a year after its retail launch was announced. The smart home robot has made an appearance at CES almost every year since it was first announced in 2020, but was notably absent at CES 2026. Unfortunately, its disappearance may be because Ballie has been shelved. In a statement emailed to Bloomberg, Samsung said Ballie is an "active innovation platform," and "continues to inform how Samsung designs spatially aware, context-driven experiences, particularly in areas like smart home intelligence, ambient AI and privacy-by-design." However, there was no mention of the robot's consumer release. There was a flood of AI robots at CES this year, like Samsung rival LG's CLOiD robot. Ballie, a bright yellow soccer ball-sized robot with a built-in projector and Google Gemini, would have fit right in, but it seems like Samsung probably isn't releasing the BB-8 look-a-like after all.

Samsung's AI Robot Ballie Probably Won't Ever Be Released

With over a decade of experience reporting on consumer technology, James covers mobile phones, apps, operating systems, wearables, AI, and more. Just a month after a positive update about Samsung's long-awaited Ballie companion robot, it now appears it won't ever be released. A concept for Ballie was first revealed in 2020 before returning in 2024 as a tweaked, AI-powered concept. At CES 2025, Samsung said it planned to sell Ballie to customers, confirming a few months later it was aiming for a summer release. That never happened, and Samsung's latest comments suggest it's either delayed or canceled. In a statement to Bloomberg, Samsung now describes the robot as an "active innovation platform" instead of a consumer product. The spokesperson said, "After multiple years of real-world testing, it continues to inform how Samsung designs spatially aware, context-driven experiences, particularly in areas like smart home intelligence, ambient AI and privacy-by-design." Back in December, Samsung told TechRadar it hadn't canceled the robot after missing its previous release schedule of summer 2025. A spokesperson said, "We are continuing to refine and perfect the technology to deliver an even more impactful customer experience." However, something appears to have changed in the last month, especially as the brand isn't showing Ballie at CES 2026. Samsung itself isn't clear on what's happening as a Ballie teaser website continues to invite US residents to preregister interest. The companion robot is pictured with text that says "see you soon." This wouldn't be the first time a previously announced Samsung product doesn't go on sale. Back in 2018, Samsung's Galaxy Home was revealed as a Bixby-powered smart speaker, alongside the Galaxy Note 9. The brand promised to share more later that year, but fell silent without providing any official updates. The Galaxy Home is presumed canceled.

You won't be able to buy Samsung's household Ballie robot after all

For years, we've been wondering when Samsung would actually bring Ballie, its cute household companion robot, to market and now we finally have our answer: it won't. After the planned summer 2025 release window came and went, the company has opted not to release the gizmo as a consumer product, at least not for the foreseeable future. According to Bloomberg, Samsung has "indefinitely shelved" the robot. A spokesperson told the publication that the company will keep Ballie around as an "active innovation platform" internally. "After multiple years of real-world testing, it continues to inform how Samsung designs spatially aware, context-driven experiences, particularly in areas like smart home intelligence, ambient AI and privacy-by-design," the spokesperson added. There's a sliver of a chance that Samsung will eventually bring Ballie to market, but that seems unlikely as things stand. So, six years after we first clapped eyes on the robot at CES 2020, (and two years after a redesigned larger version debuted), it appears to be doomed as a consumer device. It's a bit of a shame, as Ballie seemed like a fun gadget. In fairness to Samsung, companies are now likely having to be more judicious about what products -- especially more experimental ones -- go into full production amid rising costs of things like RAM.

Samsung's Ballie robot rolls to a halt

Samsung's cute, rolling robot assistant, once promised for homes by summer 2025, has now been shelved. This shift marks a sudden turn from the optimism Samsung showed when Ballie was first introduced in 2020. The small, round robot was meant to be a mobile smart home assistant that could follow you, control devices, and project images onto walls. Now, Samsung is effectively putting an end to hopes for a commercial launch. According to Bloomberg, Samsung has decided to turn Ballie from a planned consumer product into an "active innovation platform" for internal use only. Still, the website where you could sign up to "be the first to meet Ballie" is still up. Samsung hasn't officially announced a cancellation, but it's clear that Ballie won't be coming to stores in its current form. Ballie seemed like a smart home dream at first. But in reality, it faced the same problems that have troubled consumer robots for years. One big issue is usefulness. A rolling robot needs to offer more than just novelty. Voice assistants are already in speakers, phones, TVs, and watches. For Ballie to be worthwhile, it had to do more and do it reliably, without being intrusive or awkward. Ballie's pause shows a bigger truth: consumer home robots are still very hard to get right. Amazon's Astro robot never became popular and was discontinued in 2024. Other startups have either shut down or moved away from home robotics entirely. Samsung might revisit Ballie in the future, especially as AI models improve. But a surprise launch isn't likely anytime soon.

Samsung's Ballie robot won't be rolling into your home after all

Samsung now plans to use it internally as an active innovation platform. Samsung first showcased its rolling robot, Ballie, at CES six years ago. Since then, the company has periodically updated the concept, unveiling a new design with a built-in projector in 2024 and adding AI features last year. At CES 2025, Samsung promised that Ballie would launch later in the year, but that never happened. Now, a new report suggests the project may have been shelved indefinitely. Although Samsung hasn't made an official announcement, Bloomberg reports that the company has had a change of plans. Instead of launching Ballie as a consumer product, the robot will now serve as an "active innovation platform" for internal use only. In a statement to the publication, Samsung said, "After multiple years of real-world testing, it continues to inform how Samsung designs spatially aware, context-driven experiences, particularly in areas like smart home intelligence, ambient AI and privacy-by-design." Ballie's technology, the company added, will continue to shape future smart home devices, even if the robot itself never hits store shelves. Samsung shelves its rolling robot as competitors double down on humanoid helpers While Samsung may have shelved Ballie, other brands are pushing forward with their AI robot ambitions for smart homes. However, unlike Samsung's rolling design, LG and SwitchBot are betting on humanoid robots built to assist with household chores. LG has yet to share pricing or availability details for its CLOiD robot, which is designed to handle tasks like cleaning and laundry. Recommended Videos SwitcBot plans to open pre-orders for its onero H1 soon, a robot butler demoed to navigate homes autonomously and assist with routine tasks like making coffee and folding the laundry. Whether these robots actually reach consumers remains to be seen.