A camera that flies itself down the hallway to check on a noise, then docks itself when the job is done: that's the pitch behind Ring Drone Cam, one of two robots Amazon's Ring unveiled this week as it formally enters the robotics business. The company announced Ring Robotics on November 10, pairing a $249.99 indoor flying camera for homes with a $999.99 wheeled patrol robot for businesses, according to Amazon.
Ring Drone Cam records 2K video with a 148-degree field of view and can rotate a full 360 degrees mid-flight, using built-in LEDs to shoot in low light. It ships January 27, 2027, and is designed to patrol pre-set indoor routes or respond when an alarm trips, returning to a charging dock when idle. Ring Rover Cam, aimed at businesses, streams and records up to 4K video, carries a two-way audio system and an adjustable periscope mast, and performs a 360-degree scan at each stop on its patrol route. It ships first, on December 16, 2026, and is available for preorder now.
A second attempt at the robot Amazon already tried once
Both machines run on AI Pilot, a navigation system Ring built in-house that combines onboard cameras, vision models, sensors and cloud processing to map a space, suggest patrol points and steer around obstacles without a human joystick. Ring founder Jamie Siminoff said the idea grew directly out of customer reaction to Amazon's earlier home robot, Astro, which the company discontinued in July 2024. Users who liked Astro's ability to roam and check on things, Siminoff said, told Ring they wanted that same roving vision in a product built specifically for security rather than general-purpose assistance.
That makes Ring Robotics a narrower, more commercial do-over of a bet Amazon already lost money on once. Rather than a do-everything home companion, Drone Cam and Rover Cam are single-purpose security devices, closer in spirit to a flying camera and a stationary guard than to a robot butler. The enterprise-focused Rover Cam also puts Ring in more direct competition with existing commercial patrol robots and guard services, a market Amazon exited when Astro's business pivot stalled.
Privacy promises will face scrutiny given Ring's history
Amazon is leaning hard on privacy messaging, a sensitive point for a company that has faced repeated criticism over Ring's camera network and its data-sharing practices with police. Ring says video from both devices is protected by default end-to-end encryption it calls TAKE, short for Throw Away the Key. The drone powers down with its camera off while docked and only activates recording when a flight is triggered; the Rover has a Sleep Mode that retracts its periscope and disables its microphone. Both devices also flash visible LED indicators whenever they are recording.
Whether that satisfies regulators and privacy advocates will likely shape how far Ring can push the Rover Cam into commercial settings, where continuous 4K recording of employees and customers raises different stakes than a doorbell camera. With Drone Cam not shipping until late January, Amazon has roughly two and a half months of preorders and press coverage of Rover Cam to gauge business demand before the consumer version reaches homes.