Amazon Proteus

What it's for

Proteus is Amazon's first fully autonomous mobile robot (AMR), unveiled in June 2022. It carries carts of up to 400 kg, and SLAM navigation with dynamic obstacle detection lets it travel in the same space as people, signaling its intentions with lights and sound.

That is its main advantage over the older generation of Kiva-style robots, which were confined to separate zones: it needs no cages or dedicated aisles. In practice it moves finished carts to the loading gate and shifts loads between sorting and packing zones. Polish media have confirmed that Proteus works in Amazon's fully robotized facilities in Gliwice, Świebodzin and Kołbaskowo.

An important point: this is not a product for sale. Amazon uses it exclusively in its own centers. If you are looking for a robot with a similar job for your own warehouse, go to the category “Mobile robots (AMR)” and the article “AMR Robots in the Warehouse”. We describe usage scenarios in warehouses.

Who it's for

Worth considering for: strictly speaking, nobody outside Amazon. Proteus is neither sold nor rented, so it makes interesting reading for logisticians, warehouse planners and students who want to see where automation is heading inside large networks.

Probably not for: anyone who wants to buy or rent a robot. Amazon does not publish a price, dimensions or battery specifications, because there is no external offer. If your warehouse needs an AMR, start with Locus Origin (a subscription RaaS model for order picking) or MiR250 for moving pallets and carts. For heavy loads, look at OTTO 1500.

Deployments

Confirmed deployments in Poland: Polish media (including PAP, in a piece about several hundred robots in an Amazon logistics center in Poland) confirm that Proteus works in fully robotized centers in Gliwice, Świebodzin and Kołbaskowo. Amazon does not disclose figures, so we do not know the exact number of robots.

We also know of Amazon's twelfth center in Dobromierz, part of an investment exceeding 23 billion PLN (≈ EUR 5.26 billion) in 2026-2028; the specific robot types at that location are not confirmed, and we do not assume that Proteus is there. Worldwide the robot works in dozens of the company's centers.

Since Proteus cannot be bought, the alternative is any robot on the open market that does a similar job. Locus Origin is an order-picking model with a 36 kg payload, sold on subscription; a good fit when you want to scale a fleet for peak season and pay for usage. MiR250 carries 250 kg and has a broad network of integrators.

KUKA KMP 600P (600 kg, only 27 cm tall) drives under a cart much like Proteus and is available in Poland through KUKA Polska; it is the closest conceptual cousin. AGILOX ONE has a payload of up to 1,000 kg and a fleet with no central server, while HAI Robotics HaiPick A42 is a completely different concept: a robot that reaches for totes at heights of up to 6 m. For unloading trucks there is Boston Dynamics Stretch.

Amazon Robotics is the former Kiva Systems, founded in 2003 in Massachusetts. Kiva pioneered systems in which robots carry shelving to packing stations, and Proteus is the next step: a robot that needs no separate zone.

Proteus was unveiled in June 2022 and is, according to Amazon, its first fully autonomous AMR. Since then it has reached dozens of the company's logistics centers, including the Polish facilities in Gliwice, Świebodzin and Kołbaskowo. It is complemented by the arm Amazon Sparrow, which works in the same centers.