Circus completes first CA-1 robot at high-volume manufacturing site

Circus announced on 8 September 2025 that it had completed the first fourth-generation CA-1 automated food-service robot at its high-volume production facility, with further units in parallel assembly and initial customer deployments planned for the following weeks. The Munich-based company had disclosed production readiness in March, including outsourced manufacturing systems designed for potential annual capacity of up to 6,000 units. That figure represented projected annual manufacturing capacity, not achieved unit output. The stated plan of up to 6,000 units should not be read as firm customer demand or a completed factory run rate.

The CA-1 combines robotic handling, ingredient dispensing and control software in an automated meal-preparation system. Circus says the fourth-generation machine contains more than 29,000 components and undergoes over 150 precision tests during production. Celestica is its global manufacturing partner, supplying engineering, production and supply-chain support for the ramp.

Circus’s March production-readiness announcement had targeted contracted manufacturing from May and initial European deliveries from mid-2025. The September update reports the first completed unit, several more in parallel assembly and deployments planned over the following weeks. Circus also said it aimed to bring its separate CA-M system for military food supply into high-volume production in 2026 and was exploring additional production options in Europe and the United States.