Engineered Arts Ltd · entertainment humanoid
Ai-Da
A realistic female humanoid built by Engineered Arts, named after Ada Lovelace, that draws and paints using cameras in its eyes and a robotic arm developed at the University of Leeds.
- Price
- —Not published
- Height
- —Not published
- Weight
- —Not published
- Payload
- —Not published
- Speed
- —Not published
- Battery
- —Not published
Not for sale: One-off artist robot; not for sale (only its artworks are sold).
Not sure this is the one? Find the best robot for your job Starts with: entertain and perform. Five more quick questions.
Why it matters
Promoted as the first ultra-realistic humanoid robot artist to draw people from sight.
Real-world use
Exhibited at the University of Oxford in 2019 and at major galleries afterward.
Timeline
- Released
- Not yet
Maker
Engineered Arts LtdCompany · founded 2004 · Falmouth, United KingdomWhat it has been shown doing
We checked public videos and press for Ai-Da and found no clear demo of the skills we track yet.
Public attention
How much public attention Ai-Da gets, from open data.
- No Wikipedia article of its own yet
- 4 news stories from reputable press listed on this page
Measures how much people read and write about a robot, not how good it is. Measured 2026-10-13; same method for every robot. How it is measured
What’s inside
The parts the company has talked about publicly.
- Movement
- Stationary
- Hands
- A robotic (bionic) hand and drawing arm; the original arm was built by University of Leeds students Salaheldin Al Abd and Ziad Abass, and a new arm in April 2022 let it paint from a palette.
- Sensors & vision
- A camera in each eye, used with computer-vision algorithms to make eye contact, follow people and sketch what it sees.
- Materials & build
- Silicone skin, long dark hair, 3D-printed teeth and inner mouth, and individually placed eyebrow hairs; built on a RoboThespian-type body by Engineered Arts in Cornwall.
- AI & software
- Drawing algorithms from AI researchers at the University of Oxford, a language model to answer questions, poetry generation and, from 2022, collaborative sculpture algorithms.
Lineage
Every Aidan Meller (Ai-Da Robot) with Engineered Arts humanoid in order.
Made, sold and where
Unit counts are usually company figures; analysts often disagree.
- Price
- Not published
- How to get one
- Not for saleOne-off artist robot; not for sale (only its artworks are sold).
- Sold or delivered
- The robot is not sold; its artworks are.
- Where it is sold or used
- United Kingdom and international exhibitions
News
The latest 4, newest first. Summaries are ours; tap through for the original.
- Ai-Da painting sells for US$1.08 million
Ai-Da’s Alan Turing portrait A.I. God sold for US$1.08 million in Sotheby’s Digital Art Sale, which concluded November 7, 2024.
Artnet News - Ai-Da demonstrates painting with a palette
Ai-Da’s arm paints from a palette.
The Guardian - First public show in Oxford
Ai-Da appeared at the University of Oxford's Unsecured Futures exhibition.
VOA Learning English - Robot artist Ai-Da announced
Press coverage introduced the robot artist built by Engineered Arts for Aidan Meller.
VOA Learning English
Side by side with its peers
Picked by the same rules for every humanoid: another maker’s robot that moves the same way, is at the same stage and does at least one of the same main jobs, first shown within two years. Closer size and price rank higher. Few robots match closely, so these are the nearest matches. How we choose
| Measure | Ai-DaAidan Meller (Ai-Da Robot) with Engineered Arts | No public photo yetWe only show photos we're allowed to useStuntronicsWalt Disney Imagineering R&D / Disney ResearchSame job: entertainment · Both fixed in place · Both on sale or in pilots |  SaraQSS AI & Robots (with Saudi Digital)Same job: entertainment · Both fixed in place · Both on sale or in pilots |
|---|---|---|---|
| First shown | 2019-02-17 | 2018-06 | 2023-02-07 |
| Status | Commercial | Pilot use | Commercial |
| Height | — | — | 162 cm |
| Weight | — | — | — |
| Joints | — | — | — |
| Speed | — | — | — |
| Payload | — | — | — |
| Battery | — | — | — |
| Price | — | — | — |
Sources
Figures come from press coverage. Every link below backs something on this page.
Photos and logos only identify each robot and its maker. Simbeing is not affiliated with, sponsored by or endorsing any company, and nothing here is advertising. Figures are for statistics only and are not advice of any kind. Terms of use