KUKA is a German industrial robot maker, founded in Augsburg in 1898, that has been fully owned by China’s Midea Group since November 2022. Its current robot range runs from the 3 kg KR DELTA picker to the KR titan, which carries up to 1,300 kg. KUKA doesn’t publish robot prices. You buy through its sales team, an integrator, the my.KUKA online portal, or its used-robot program.
Which KUKA robot fits which job
KUKA’s industrial robots page lists 14 families by payload. Reach varies by model inside each family, so payload is the fastest first filter.
Small parts, electronics, picking (up to about 20 kg)
- KR DELTA: 3 kg. A parallel “spider” robot for fast pick-and-place from a conveyor.
- KR AGILUS: 4–11 kg. KUKA’s small six-axis arm for assembly, handling and machine tending.
- KR SCARA: 6–60 kg. Four-axis arms for horizontal pick-and-place and screwing.
- KR CYBERTECH nano: 6–10 kg, and KR CYBERTECH: 8–22 kg. Mid-small arms often used for arc welding and handling.
Working next to people
- LBR iiwa: 7–14 kg. A seven-axis arm with torque sensors in every joint, common in research labs and sensitive assembly.
- LBR iisy: 3–15 kg. KUKA’s newer collaborative arm, built around its iiQKA software platform.
Mid to heavy handling
- KR IONTEC: 20–120 kg.
- KR QUANTEC: 120–300 kg. The workhorse family on many car body lines.
- KR FORTEC: 240–800 kg.
- KR titan: 750–1,300 kg. For engine blocks, stone, glass and other very heavy parts.
Palletizing
- KR 40 PA (40 kg), KR 470 PA (300–470 kg) and KR 700 PA (700 kg): arms built for stacking bags, cases and crates at the end of a line.
KUKA’s free KUKA Compose tool lets you check whether your gripper and part fit a model’s load diagram and compare up to three robots side by side. If you’re still deciding what payload, reach and repeatability you need, our guide on how to choose an industrial robot arm for a task walks through the numbers.
What runs the robots
Current KUKA arms use the KR C5 controller family. KUKA’s robot controllers page lists the KR C5 for iiQKA.OS2 and the slimmer KR C5 micro for iiQKA.OS2 for small robots, along with the KUKA smartPAD teach pendant operators use to jog and program the arm. iiQKA.OS2 is KUKA’s current robot operating system.
On the software side above a single cell, KUKA AMP is its layer for coordinating robots, AMRs and AI agents across a plant.
Who owns KUKA
KUKA AG says on its company page that it is headquartered in Augsburg, with around 14,500 employees and EUR 3.9 billion in sales (the page doesn’t give a year for those figures).
Ownership changed in steps. Midea became the majority shareholder after its 2016–2017 takeover. On November 8, 2022, KUKA announced that the squeeze-out of minority shareholders was complete: all remaining shares were transferred to Guangdong Midea Electric Co., Ltd., a Midea holding company, and minority holders received EUR 80.77 per share in cash. Since then KUKA has no outside shareholders and is no longer a separately traded stock.
For buyers, the practical effect so far is limited: product lines, the Augsburg headquarters and the US subsidiary in Shelby Township, Michigan, all continue under the KUKA name. Some US and European buyers do ask about Chinese ownership for public-sector or defense-related projects; if that applies to you, raise it with your procurement team before you request a quote.
How to buy a KUKA robot
- Size the robot first. Use KUKA Compose or your integrator to settle payload, reach and mounting.
- Decide who builds the cell. Most buyers get a full cell (robot, gripper, guarding, safety PLC, programming) from a KUKA system partner rather than buying a bare arm.
- Request a quote. In the US, KUKA Robotics Corporation (51870 Shelby Parkway, Shelby Township, MI) takes inquiries through the contact form or +1 866 873 5852, as listed on the US industrial robots page.
- Registered customers can order online. The my.KUKA portal shows product data and availability and lets account holders purchase directly.
- Consider used. KUKA sells refurbished used robots as a lower-cost option; ask sales what’s in stock for your payload class.
KUKA doesn’t list prices on its website for any of these routes. Your quote will depend on the arm, controller options, software packages, safety features and the integration work around it.
KUKA compared with ABB and FANUC
KUKA, ABB, FANUC and Yaskawa are the four makers most buyers shortlist for six-axis industrial arms. ABB is in the middle of selling its robotics division to SoftBank; our ABB Robotics 2026 guide covers what that means for buyers. The choice among them usually comes down to which brand your integrator and maintenance team already support, more than to arm specs.