South Korea-based Bear Robotics, a subsidiary of LG Electronics, is accelerating its global expansion in service robotics with a newly unveiled compact robot designed for densely packed restaurant environments, aiming to remove one of the final physical barriers to automation in small and mid-sized hospitality venues.
The company unveiled its “Servi Q” model at the National Restaurant Association Show in Chicago, held May 16–19 local time, according to a statement released May 21. The robot was co-developed with SoftBank Robotics.
Servi Q is the smallest addition to Bear Robotics’ Servi lineup and is engineered to navigate narrow aisles and tightly spaced dining layouts where conventional service robots typically struggle. The company said the system can operate in corridors as narrow as 18 inches (about 45.7 centimeters), allowing deployment without requiring restaurants to redesign floor plans.
The robot is designed to maintain stability during abrupt stops and when crossing thresholds to prevent liquid spillage. It can reverse out of confined spaces when turning is not possible, and it automatically halts if obstacles are detected while backing up.
Additional features include anti-debris wheel systems and a dedicated cleaning mode aimed at improving durability and ease of maintenance.
A key feature is its multi-robot coordination system, which enables fleets to operate without centralized infrastructure. Instead, robots communicate via real-time peer-to-peer routing to dynamically avoid congestion and operational deadlock in busy environments.
Bear Robotics said operators can deploy mixed fleets, pairing its larger Servi Plus model in main dining areas with Servi Q units in bars, kitchen corridors, and other constrained spaces. The robots also feature front-facing displays that can show menus, promotions, and branded content while in motion, effectively turning them into mobile marketing platforms.
The company is expanding its commercial robotics portfolio into more specialized categories, including the Servi Clean cleaning robot and Carti, an industrial modular robot platform, as it builds out a full-stack offering for global customers.
LG Electronics invested $60 million in Bear Robotics in March 2024 for a 21% stake and later exercised a call option to increase its ownership to 51%, completing a takeover that brought the company under full subsidiary control.
Bear Robotics Chief Executive Ha Jung-woo said Servi Q is designed to eliminate the last remaining physical constraints to automation in small venues, arguing that any space with a corridor is now a potential deployment site for service robotics.
