Stryker has performed the first patient cases using the Mako RPS, a new handheld robot for knee surgeries that compresses the existing Mako platform into a portable, surgeon-controlled instrument. The first cases were completed in late May 2026 at US orthopedic centers.
What Mako RPS changes
Where the existing Mako Total Knee runs as a cart-based system anchored to the operating room, the RPS device clips into the surgeon’s hand and pairs with the same preoperative CT-based planning pipeline. Cut paths are constrained by haptic boundaries derived from the implant plan, but the procedure footprint fits neatly into ambulatory surgery centers where capital equipment budgets are tighter.
Why this matters for the surgical robotics market
Stryker’s Mako franchise has dominated robotic knees in the United States, but ambulatory surgery centers have long resisted the floor space and capital intensity of cart-based robots. The handheld form factor mirrors a broader miniaturization trend in surgical robotics, evident in CMR Surgical’s Versius Plus 510(k) clearance and in Johnson & Johnson’s Ottava trial.
Pipeline and shoulder feature
Stryker also confirmed that a shoulder application, currently in a limited launch on the Mako 3 system, will move to the Mako 4 platform in mid-2026. Together with the RPS, the moves widen Stryker’s addressable orthopedic procedure base beyond knee and hip.
Competitive picture
Intuitive Surgical posted a strong Q1 with 431 da Vinci systems installed and $2.77 billion in revenue, while Medtronic’s Hugo system received its US FDA clearance in February. The RPS lets Stryker defend its orthopedic franchise as those competitors expand horizontally.
Reporting based on coverage from MedTech Dive and 24/7 Wall St.