Zeroth Launches Bridge, the World’s First AI-Native Embodied Robot, and OpenBridge Open-Source Ecosystem

SUZHOU, China--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sep 2, 2026--

Zeroth today launched Bridge, the world’s first AI-native embodied robot, alongside OpenBridge, a fully open-source ecosystem for embodied intelligence.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260902664110/en/

The first batch of the Bridge Geek Edition is now available for purchase, while Zeroth has also launched the Bridge Builder Program to invite developers worldwide to participate in the OpenBridge ecosystem.

Built for real-world deployment and developer creation, Zeroth Bridge combines an AI-native architecture with a compact, lightweight humanoid form and open developer interfaces.

Together, Bridge and OpenBridge represent Zeroth’s approach : provide developers with an accessible, high-performance embodied robot for real-world development, while building an open-source ecosystem that enables a broader global community to participate in creating robot capabilities.

Zeroth Bridge: The World’s First AI-Native Embodied Robot

At the center of the launch is Zeroth Bridge, the world’s first AI-native embodied robot.

Standing 88 cm tall and weighing approximately 13 kg, Bridge features a compact humanoid form with 30–40 cm arms and two-finger grippers. Engineered with the core philosophy of “premium performance in a compact form,” Bridge features a streamlined, desktop-friendly design optimized for size and weight.

Unlike traditional pre-programmed robots limited to fixed movements, Zeroth Bridge is built as a true embodied intelligent robot — fully AI-native by design. Its hardware, motion stack and developer interfaces are purpose-built for real-world deployment and community-driven development, enabling flexible, reliable physical interaction instead of rigid preset execution.

Bridge ships with a broad set of capabilities out of the box, including stable bipedal walking, intelligent obstacle avoidance, and a full library of natural, human-like movements and choreography.

Tech enthusiasts and developers will gain full access to underlying SDKs, open motion-control APIs, and motion capture & VR integration, enabling custom algorithm deployment, scenario-based tuning and personalized skill creation.

OpenBridge: A Fully Open-Source Ecosystem for Embodied Intelligence Developers

Alongside Bridge, Zeroth launched OpenBridge, an innovative open-source ecosystem designed for developers in embodied intelligence.

Bridge natively supports OpenBridge, connecting the AI-native embodied robot with a broader open-source developer ecosystem. OpenBridge aims to build an open and collaborative developer platform, enabling creators worldwide to co-build, share and co-create robot capabilities.

Supported by unified development tools, shared training resources and a public Skill Hub, OpenBridge creates an open development environment where developers can contribute and share robot capabilities across the community.

Rather than keeping innovation within isolated robot systems, OpenBridge is designed to make developer-created capabilities easier to share and build upon by others.

Android changed who could define what a smartphone could do. OpenBridge aims to explore a similar possibility for robots.

By bringing together an AI-native embodied robot and an open-source developer ecosystem, Zeroth hopes to move embodied intelligence toward a model in which robot capabilities are shaped not only by manufacturers, but also by developers around the world.

The Bridge Builder Program: Inviting Developers to Build Together

To bring more developers into the OpenBridge ecosystem, Zeroth has also launched the Bridge Builder Program.

In its first phase, 500 developers will be shortlisted for a co-creation challenge, with the Top 200 receiving complimentary access to experience Bridge and participate in OpenBridge ecosystem co-creation.

The remaining 300 shortlisted developers will receive priority purchase access to the Bridge Geek Edition, SDK access, and eligibility for subsequent openings in the program.

The Bridge Builder Program marks the first step in turning OpenBridge from an open-source ecosystem into a community shaped by real developer participation.

The name OpenBridge reflects Zeroth’s broader vision: to create a bridge connecting robots, developers, and capabilities — an open environment where more creators can define what robots can do.

“We hope that one day, everyone can participate in creating robots. To make that possible, we want to make robotics more open to everyone,” said Renjie Guo, Founder and CEO of Zeroth. “The world has no shortage of walls. We choose to build bridges.”

Zeroth is exploring a new model where robot capabilities are defined not only by the company, but also by global developers.

Availability

The Zeroth Bridge is available for global booking starting September 2, 2026 through zeroth-openbridge.com. The price of Zeroth Bridge may vary by region, as indicated on the website.

Applications for the Bridge Builder Program are also open through zeroth-openbridge.com. Interested developers can submit an application form online, and selected applicants will be invited to join the program.

About Zeroth

Zeroth is an AI robotics company specializing in the research and development of embodied AI and robotics technologies as well as the application of related products. Founded in 2024 and headquartered in Suzhou, China, the company leverages proprietary core components, motion control systems, and embodied AI foundation models to build full-stack intelligent robot systems for real-world applications. As a global leader in consumer-grade embodied AI, Zeroth’s product portfolio spans family companionship, multi-scenario interaction, and complex environment exploration, with a focus on delivering natural, reliable, and empathetic human-robot experiences.

Zeroth Bridge: The World’s First AI-Native Embodied Robot

PATTAYA, Thailand (AP) — There’s no getting around the fact that Thailand’s seaside resort of Pattaya has a lingering reputation for sex tourism, even though that’s only part of the story for the city that's a major shore leave destination of crew members aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln.

Many of the 5,000 or so sailors and Marines onboard the Lincoln, as well as personnel on other ships in its carrier strike group, are visiting Pattaya for some rest and recuperation this week after the big ship’s long, troubled tour of duty in the Middle East.

They will be following millions of other tourists, including a significant number of U.S. military personnel who take part every year in major land and sea exercises nearby with their Thai counterparts.

Social media ahead of the Lincoln’s visit has been awash with jibes about lusty sailors, but recent visitors say the development of more family-friendly attractions means the new. more wholesome Pattaya overshadows its former seedy self.

Many U.S. Navy ships dock at nearby deep-water facilities such as Laem Chabang Port and the Sattahip Royal Thai Navy Base, both less than an hour away by road.

Shore leave spending boosts the local economy, and mission duties often include community outreach in and around the city, about 100 kilometers (60 miles) southeast of Bangkok. That includes specialized medical care for villagers or putting in volunteer time at orphanages.

But when hundreds or thousands of sailors have a chance to enjoy some onshore liberty, the navy deploys members of its Shore Patrol to work side by side with Thai police to defuse any trouble.

Navy personnel are likely to have been reminded that, though rarely enforced, the law in Thailand technically bans prostitution, and paying for sex is a punishable offense under Article 134 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, the legal framework for the U.S. armed forces.

The military connection goes back at least to the Vietnam War era, when at its height, 40,000–50,000 U.S. service personnel were stationed in Thailand, largely in support of that conflict’s air operations. Bases used by U.S. forces dotted Thailand, and all attracted their share of nightlife activities.

Pattaya was close to both the Sattahip naval base and the Thai Navy’s U-Tapao airfield, which hosted U.S. Air Force B-52 bombers.

Elizabeth Becker, author of “Overbooked: The Exploding Business of Travel and Tourism,” wrote that American GIs during the Vietnam War flocked to Pattaya, a once-quiet fishing village, “and it turned into a raunchy seaside playground.”

The military facilities brought a continuous stream of personnel through Pattaya, while the 1966 Entertainment Places Act created a legal gray area allowing the sex trade to operate semi-openly in bars and massage parlors — as something of a private arrangement between customer and employee — despite a 1960 law criminalizing prostitution.

Pattaya also had a beach that could be reached relatively easily from Bangkok, which positioned it well for a transition to civilian visitors after the withdrawal of U.S. military forces in 1976.

Pattaya’s infrastructure of go-go clubs and other entertainment venues was then marketed to travelers arriving in greater numbers due to cheaper air travel and a boom in package tours. Sex tourism became entrenched.

Severe economic disparities brought many young women and men from Thailand’s poor northeastern Isan region to work in Pattaya's lucrative nightlife sector. They earned wages far exceeding rural agricultural incomes, allowing them to send money home to their families.

Prostitution is culturally taboo, but sex work has quietly flourished in Thai society for centuries, with the domestic market dwarfing the more glitzy one for foreigners.

Pattaya underwent another evolution in the 1990s, with a new wave of tourists coming from what had been the Soviet Union, after communism there collapsed in late 1991.

Embracing modern globalized tourism, the newcomers came on direct charter flights, even from provincial cities, to the civilian airport at U-Tapao, benefiting from a 30-day visa-free agreement. Signs in Cyrillic sprouted around Pattaya as businesses catered to this new clientele.

Russians were not the only people calling Pattaya their home away from home.

The agreeable climate and allegedly laissez-faire attitude of local law enforcement attracted fugitives from justice and criminals from all over the world, including Russian, Eastern European, and Western European gangsters as well as drug-dealing motorcycle gangs from Australia.

Pattaya has tried with some success to rebrand itself as a family destination, with parks, malls and luxury resorts largely in surrounding areas that attract large numbers of Thais and visitors from other Asian nations.

A popular water park is themed around Cartoon Network shows. The Nong Nooch Tropical Botanical Garden displays vast stretches of flora and hosts cultural shows. The Sanctuary of Truth Museum is an ornate all-wood structure over 100 meters (yards) tall.

There are also golf courses, running events and day trips to nearby islands.

Travelers can still get a taste of the spicier old Pattaya with a nocturnal stroll down “Walking Street,” at the heart of the city’s racy nightlife district.

Peck reported from Bangkok.

Tourists ride a jet ski on Pattaya Beach in Pattaya, Thailand, on Aug. 31, 2026. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

Boats float on Pattaya Beach in Thailand, on Aug. 31, 2026. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

Tourists stroll down Walking Street in Pattaya, Thailand, on Aug. 31, 2026. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

Tourists parasail on Pattaya Beach in Thailand, on Aug. 31, 2026. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

Customers of a restaurant sit under a banner in Pattaya, Thailand, on Sept. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)