DEPLOYThe reference layer for physical AI

Robot model

CIMON

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 is a space robot built by Airbus. · Documented in 1 deployment in International Space Station.

discontinuedDiscontinued. The product or service is no longer actively pursued by the maker.

Track CIMON

Machine-readable surfaces

Form factor
space
Maturity stage
research
Lifecycle
discontinued
Deployments
1
ID
61cff193-7f38-4434-ad75-3b057c54e1ae

Deploy Watch

Track CIMON on Deploy.

We notify you when pricing, deployment status, or regulatory state changes against primary-source evidence, not when the maker issues claims.

Specs

ai
IBM Watson natural-language
role
ISS crew-assistant free-flyer
builder
Airbus (DLR-funded)
autonomy
voice-commanded assistant; autonomous free-flight station-keeping only

Recent deployments (1)

Sources (1)

  1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CIMON

Common questions

What is CIMON?
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).
Who makes CIMON?
CIMON is made by Airbus, based in Leiden, Netherlands / Toulouse, France, founded in 1970.
Where is CIMON deployed?
1 verified deployment of CIMON is on the DEPLOY registry, including at International Space Station.
What is CIMON's maturity stage?
CIMON is at the research stage on the DEPLOY maturity ladder (research, prototype, pilot, commercial, production). Research stage means active development without commercial deployments on file.
Is CIMON still being made?
CIMON is discontinued: the product line is permanently ceased; historical records remain on the registry.
Methodology: Verified · 1 source (no primary) · last reviewed 2026-06-06

Verification posture

Verified

Low confidence

Review state

Stable

Last reviewed 2026-06-06

Maturity + lifecycle

Maturity stage: research

Lifecycle: discontinued

Architectural position

Cohort: space

Sources by quality tier

1
knowledge-base
Knowledge base

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

Methodology surface for CIMON.