What is the CIMON deployment at International Space Station?

CIMON, built by Airbus, is recorded as a deployment at International Space Station on the DEPLOY registry. Airbus operates the deployment directly.

Who operates CIMON at International Space Station?

Airbus, the manufacturer of CIMON, operates this deployment directly. This is a maker-deploys-its-own-product arrangement rather than a customer pilot.

When did the CIMON deployment at International Space Station go live?

The deployment is recorded as starting June 29, 2018 on the DEPLOY registry. Earlier activity may exist but is not yet sourced.

Is the CIMON deployment at International Space Station still active?

As of the most recent verification on the DEPLOY registry, this deployment is no longer operating at this location.

Have there been incidents at the CIMON deployment at International Space Station?

No active incidents affecting this deployment are recorded on the DEPLOY registry. Absence of recorded incidents is not a guarantee no incident occurred; DEPLOY records only sourced incidents and suppresses retracted ones.

Deployment

CIMON at International Space Station

Name: CIMON at International Space Station
Start: 2018-06-29T12:00:00.000Z
Location: International Space Station

Crew Interactive Mobile Companion: a free-flying spherical ISS crew-assistant built by Airbus (funded by DLR) using IBM Watson for natural-language interaction. Activated and controlled by astronaut voice command ('wake up'); it is a voice assistant with autonomous free-flight station-keeping, NOT an autonomous agent. CIMON-1 demonstrated on the ISS from 2018-06-29 and returned to Earth 2019-08-27; CIMON-2 launched 2019-12-05 (later operational status not publicly confirmed).

CIMON by Airbus · Catalog entry · 3 sources · not yet field-verified

Track CIMON at International Space Station

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Machine-readable surfaces

Markdown mirror: /deployments/cimon-iss-demonstration.md
JSON-LD: embedded in this page’s head
REST API: /v1/robots/2d0c54ef-f0c9-468a-916a-db1542b71ccb
Data documentation: /data
Query this programmatically: Deploy MCP

CIMON-1 delivered 2018-07-02; returned Earth 2019-08-27 (ended). CIMON-2 launched 2019-12-05, debuted 2020-02, planned 3-year stay. This deployment record covers the 2018-2019 CIMON-1 technology demonstrator. Outcome: successful first tasks including autonomous navigation, face recognition, voice interaction via IBM Watson, and media display with ESA astronaut Alexander Gerst.

Key facts

Mission: CIMON-1 ISS crew-assistant demonstration
Outcome: Operated on ISS 2018-2019, returned to Earth 2019-08-27; CIMON-2 launched 2019-12-05 (later status unconfirmed)
Start: CIMON-1 delivered to ISS 2018-07-02
Technology: Autonomous navigation, face recognition, voice interaction via IBM Watson, and media display
Partner: ESA astronaut Alexander Gerst performed first tasks with CIMON-1
Status: CIMON-2 debuted 2020-02 with planned 3-year stay on ISS

Safety record

No incidents on record for CIMON at International Space Station.

Only active incidents are counted. Retracted incidents are excluded from this summary but remain reachable at their canonical URLs.

Trust tier: Catalog entry · 3 sources · not yet field-verifiedhow tiers work →
Last updated: 2026-07-10
Model: CIMON
Company: Airbus
Location: International Space Station
Status: ended
Operator type: maker operated
First seen: 2018-06-29
ID: 2d0c54ef-f0c9-468a-916a-db1542b71ccb

Timeline

Jun 2018
First recorded
CIMON first documented operating at International Space Station.
Jun 2018
created
Jun 2026
field updated
sources: source added → DLR: CIMON-2 makes its debut on the ISS
Jun 2026
field updated
sources: source added → Airbus: Crew assistant CIMON successfully completes first tasks in space
Jul 2026
Current status: ended, reviewed
Latest recorded state. New status transitions append here as the deployment-status recorder produces them.

On the deployment map

CIMON operates in International Space Station. Explore the full verified map:

The global deployment map →

Sources (3)

Methodology: Verified · 3 sources (no primary) · last reviewed 2026-07-10

Verification posture

Verified

Low confidence

Review state

Stable

Last reviewed 2026-07-10

Maturity + lifecycle

Maturity stage: research

Lifecycle: discontinued

Architectural position

Cohort: space

Sources by quality tier

2: unclassified; Unclassified source
1: knowledge-base; Knowledge base

The framework is documented at /methodology. Corrections at /corrections. Reviewer: DEPLOY editorial team.

Common questions

What is the CIMON deployment at International Space Station?: CIMON, built by Airbus, is recorded as a deployment at International Space Station on the DEPLOY registry. Airbus operates the deployment directly.
Who operates CIMON at International Space Station?: Airbus, the manufacturer of CIMON, operates this deployment directly. This is a maker-deploys-its-own-product arrangement rather than a customer pilot.
When did the CIMON deployment at International Space Station go live?: The deployment is recorded as starting June 29, 2018 on the DEPLOY registry. Earlier activity may exist but is not yet sourced.
Is the CIMON deployment at International Space Station still active?: As of the most recent verification on the DEPLOY registry, this deployment is no longer operating at this location.
Have there been incidents at the CIMON deployment at International Space Station?: No active incidents affecting this deployment are recorded on the DEPLOY registry. Absence of recorded incidents is not a guarantee no incident occurred; DEPLOY records only sourced incidents and suppresses retracted ones.

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