A robot SDK (Software Development Kit) is a software toolkit that lets developers program robots faster without coding every function from scratch. 

The Gemini robotics SDK is one of the most advanced examples in 2025. It provides ready-made APIs, libraries, and frameworks to manage motion, sensing, navigation, and AI.

By handling the complex groundwork, SDKs let teams focus on useful features and scaling their projects. Platforms like Gemini enable a faster path from prototype to deployment, whether the goal is a warehouse robot, a healthcare assistant, or a research platform. These toolkits build on the broader field of robotics, which continues to expand into more industries every year.

What is a robot SDK?

A robot SDK is a bundle of software tools, libraries, and resources provided by a robot manufacturer or platform provider to help developers create applications for that specific robot.

Instead of writing custom code for every motor or sensor, you can rely on built-in functions for movement, perception, and communication. This speeds up development and makes scaling easier, and many of the robot terms you’ll encounter in SDKs describe these same functions and components.

At its core, a robot SDK provides:

• APIs for control: These let developers command robots to move, stop, avoid obstacles, or read sensor data. APIs save time by replacing low-level coding with simple, high-level functions.
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• Libraries for sensing: Robots need to process data from cameras, LiDAR, or microphones. SDK libraries include modules for object recognition, mapping, or speech-to-text, making advanced perception much easier to implement.
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• Frameworks for integration: Frameworks connect robot hardware with the software on top. They allow wheels, arms, sensors, and cloud services to work together reliably, even across different vendors.

These tools turn robotics programming into a practical workflow instead of a massive coding project. A robotics programming SDK can help a warehouse robot plan safe routes or a humanoid robot process speech using prebuilt APIs. Many modern manufacturing robots use similar integrations to scale from prototypes to production.

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Gemini robotics SDK: Features and use cases

The Gemini robotics SDK is a development toolkit designed for building, testing, and scaling robotics applications. It supports both research projects and commercial use, giving developers a consistent environment from early prototypes through to deployment.

What makes Gemini SDK stand out?

Gemini provides an AI robotics SDK approach, combining motion planning, perception, and decision-making into one package. It includes built-in robot motion planning SDK features for navigation and obstacle avoidance, along with simulation tools for testing designs before deployment. This reduces the amount of low-level coding developers need to write and shortens development cycles.

Role in research, AI, and commercial applications

In research, Gemini is used to test AI-driven robotics in controlled environments. This gives teams a solid foundation for experiments in machine learning and adaptive systems. In industry, it supports automation tasks such as warehouse logistics, assembly-line robotics, and healthcare support. These applications benefit from the SDK’s consistent performance and adaptability.

For example, companies like Robotnik provide mobile platforms that pair well with SDKs for research and industrial use. And in collaborative robotics, arms like the UR3 robot show how SDKs enable precise motion and safe human interaction.

Example projects built with Gemini:

• Logistics: Mobile robots that plan delivery routes and avoid congestion in warehouses
• Healthcare: Robots that navigate hospitals to assist staff with transporting supplies
• Research: Platforms that use AI to improve adaptability and learning through simulation and real-world testing

Temi robot SDK as a case study

The Temi robot SDK gives developers direct access to the Temi personal robot. It is a mobile assistant designed for everyday use in homes, shops, and hospitality spaces. Developers use Temi’s APIs to build apps that tap into its voice, navigation, and interactive features without months of coding. 

Voice, navigation, and interactive APIs

Temi comes with three main capabilities: voice recognition, indoor navigation, and user-facing interactions like video calls or media control. Through the SDK, each of these can be tapped into with a straightforward API call. For example, a developer can link the voice system to a custom app or program, Temi, to autonomously guide visitors around a retail store.

Benefits for developers

Temi works well as both a mobile and service robot SDK, since it is built for close interaction with people.

Developers can test service applications such as customer support, healthcare assistance, or home automation without needing access to large industrial robots. This lowers the entry barrier and makes Temi a practical platform for prototyping and real-world pilots.

Similar examples include humanoid platforms like the Pepper robot and interactive robot assistants. Both show how SDKs can bring people-facing robots into everyday environments.

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Core features of robotics development tools

The core features of robotics development tools give developers the building blocks to create reliable, scalable robots. These include APIs for control, simulation software, middleware for integration, and cloud-based AI capabilities. 

Together, they provide the foundation for nearly every robotics project, from simple prototypes to large-scale manufacturing deployments. Even basic facts about robots show how these features shape performance, safety, and scalability in practice.

Here are the essentials you’ll find in nearly every toolkit:

• APIs for motion, navigation, and sensing: APIs let robots move, avoid obstacles, and process surroundings without low-level code. For example, you can call an API to send a robot to a point while it tracks sensors. 
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• Simulation and testing environments: Simulation software models robots in virtual spaces before hardware tests. Developers use it to reduce risks, save time, and debug safely, whether refining arm motion or warehouse navigation. 
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• Middleware and frameworks: Robotics middleware links hardware, sensors, and applications. Paired with frameworks, it ensures smooth integration across different vendors and keeps systems reliable at scale. 
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• Cloud and AI integrations: Robots use cloud and edge AI to access analytics, models, and real-time data. A cleaning robot, for example, can upload maps, retrain navigation, and update its behavior automatically.

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Types of robot SDKs in 2025

The types of robot SDKs in 2025 range from collaborative toolkits for people-safe robots to high-performance industrial SDKs and open-source frameworks like ROS2. Each serves a distinct role, helping developers address safety, speed, or flexibility requirements depending on whether they build research platforms, service robots, or factory automation systems.

Here are the main types you’ll encounter:

Collaborative robot SDKs

These SDKs are designed for cobots, robots that share workspaces with people instead of replacing them. They emphasize safety with features like collision detection, force limits, and simple interfaces. 

Developers use them in industries such as electronics, packaging, and healthcare. Different types of collaborative robots are emerging. In manufacturing, these cobot designs are reshaping workflows by adding flexibility and reducing the need for dedicated safety zones.

Industrial robot SDKs

Industrial SDKs focus on speed, precision, and reliability for high-throughput environments such as automotive manufacturing, heavy logistics, or metal fabrication. They provide advanced motion control, scheduling systems for 24/7 operations, and integration with factory software like MES and ERP platforms. 

These SDKs are critical where downtime or errors carry high costs, and integration with factory systems makes them essential for scaling robotics in production environments.

Open-source robotics SDKs

Open-source platforms such as ROS2 are widely used in research, education, and startups. They give developers maximum flexibility, access to a global community of contributors, and a large library of prebuilt packages.

Open-source SDKs are often chosen for prototyping, proof-of-concept projects, or when budgets are limited, and they can later be adapted into commercial systems.

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Challenges with robot SDKs

The challenges with robot SDKs come from integration, licensing, and steep learning curves. Hardware from multiple vendors may not connect smoothly, licensing can limit flexibility, and documentation often falls short. Addressing these hurdles early helps developers keep projects reliable, cost-effective, and ready to scale into production environments.

The most common challenges include:

• Hardware integration: Robots often combine components from multiple vendors, such as sensors, actuators, and controllers. If the SDK does not support all devices out of the box, developers may need custom drivers or middleware. This slows down projects and can increase costs.
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• Licensing and compatibility: Open-source SDKs are cost-effective, but may lack enterprise-level support. Proprietary SDKs often come with licensing fees and restrictions that tie developers to a specific vendor’s hardware or ecosystem. These factors limit flexibility and can raise long-term expenses.
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• Steep learning curve: Even with prebuilt libraries and APIs, robotics development is highly technical. Teams new to robotics may struggle with advanced tools. Communities such as the robot forum can be a useful place to find support, examples, and shared solutions. Poor documentation or limited examples only add to the difficulty. 

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Best practices for robotics developers

Best practices for robotics developers focus on building reliable workflows instead of just choosing the right SDK. Successful teams start with open-source kits to prototype, test everything in simulation before deployment, and use middleware to manage complexity. These habits reduce errors, lower costs, and keep robotics projects adaptable over time.

Here are the practices worth adopting:

1. Start with open-source SDKs: Platforms like ROS2 are free, well-documented, and supported by large communities. They let developers learn the basics, test ideas quickly, and build prototypes with minimal cost.
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2. Use simulation before deployment: ​​Simulation tools let teams test navigation, motion planning, and sensors safely before moving to hardware. This reduces risks, catches errors early, and saves time and money.
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3. Combine SDKs with middleware: Pairing SDKs with middleware simplifies data exchange across robots and hardware. It keeps projects flexible, scalable, and easier to integrate across different vendors. 

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Future of robotics SDKs

The future of robotics SDKs lies in accessibility, faster deployment, and cross-platform standards. No-code tools are lowering entry barriers, cloud-native SDKs are enabling smarter autonomy, and standardized APIs are making it easier to integrate hardware from multiple vendors. These trends are reshaping how developers build and scale robotics applications.

No-code and low-code robotics

SDKs are gradually adding visual tools and simplified workflows, so developers do not need deep programming knowledge to get started. This lowers the barrier to entry, which makes robotics development more accessible to professionals in industries that need automation but lack specialized coding expertise.

Cloud-native and edge AI SDKs

More SDKs now connect to the cloud or run AI models directly on edge devices. This lets robots process data in real time, share insights across fleets, and adapt to changing environments without relying on heavy local computing power. The result is faster, smarter robotics applications.

Standardized APIs across platforms

A common frustration in robotics has been the lack of consistent APIs. Different vendors require different integrations, slowing down development. New SDKs are moving toward shared API standards, allowing developers to write code once and apply it across multiple robot types and hardware systems.

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Why do robot SDKs matter in 2025?

Robot SDKs like Gemini and Temi are transforming robotics development by giving teams faster prototyping, consistent integration, and smarter performance. They shift robotics from heavy coding projects to scalable toolkits that work across industries. For developers, mastering SDKs now means building more reliable robots and staying competitive as automation accelerates.

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Next steps with Standard Bots 

Looking to upgrade your automation game? Standard Bots’ RO1 is the perfect six-axis cobot addition to any robotic setup, delivering unbeatable precision and flexibility.

• Affordable and adaptable: RO1 costs $37K (list price). Get high-precision automation at half the cost of traditional robots.
• Precision and power: With a repeatability of ±0.025 mm and an 18 kg payload, RO1 handles even the most demanding CNC jobs.
• AI-driven simplicity: Equipped with AI capabilities on par with GPT-4, RO1 integrates seamlessly with robotic systems for advanced automation.
• Safety-first design: Machine vision and collision detection mean RO1 works safely alongside human operators.

Schedule your on-site demo with our engineers today and see how RO1 can bring AI-powered greatness to your shop floor.

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FAQs

1. How does the Gemini robotics SDK help developers?

The Gemini robotics SDK helps developers by providing ready-to-use APIs, libraries, and training pipelines. It supports motion planning, perception, and simulation in tools like MuJoCo. This allows teams to test, integrate, and scale projects faster without building every function from scratch.

2. Is the Temi robot SDK open-source?

The Temi robot SDK has an open-source platform, and it’s built on Android, so developers can use Java or Kotlin in Android Studio to build apps for navigation, voice, and video calls. This makes Temi a flexible option for service robotics and people-facing applications.

3. What are the best open-source robotics SDKs?

The best open-source robotics SDKs include the Robot Operating System (ROS2), OpenCV for vision, and Viam for hardware-agnostic robotics. Specialized frameworks like MOOS-IvP support autonomous systems. These options are widely used for research, prototyping, and low-cost robotics development.

4. Can I use a robot SDK for industrial robots?

A robot SDK can be used for industrial robots to program motion, sensing, and integration. SDKs often provide more flexibility than vendor-specific languages, making them common in automotive, logistics, and electronics manufacturing, where scalability and precision are critical.

5. What tools are included in a typical robot SDK?

A typical robot SDK includes APIs for motion, sensing, and control, plus simulators, debuggers, and middleware. Many also add cloud connectors and AI modules for advanced decision-making. These tools give developers everything needed to build, test, and scale robotics applications.