Syncere’s Lume Robot Floor Lamp Can Actually Fold Laundry, Make Your Bed

A brief video showed a pair of arms slithering out from an ultra slim floor lamp, reaching out to pick up a rumpled blanket, and then nimbly transforming it into a clean rectangle in the blink of an eye. That lamp is called Lume, the creation of a Palo Alto-based company, and they had a rather basic idea: what if house robots looked more like furniture than machinery?

Aaron Tan and Angus Fung met while pursuing their doctorates in Mechanical and Industrial Engineering at the University of Toronto, and they went on to spend years in a lab inventing robots that could work safely alongside humans. Early on, they created prototypes that moved on two legs and undoubtedly piqued people’s interest, but every time they showed them to families or hotel staff, the response was the same: they just did not want another large, cumbersome object taking up space. The duo continued to reflect on how common equipment such as washers and dryers blend into the background until they are needed. One evening, while watching an old film, they observed a remarkable moment where domestic items came to life, and it immediately hit them that the answer was staring them right in the face all along.

Lume simply sits in a corner or by the bed, performing all of the tasks of a great floor light, such as casting a pleasant glow around the room and remaining silent until you move or use the app. The base swings open, the arms extend, and a small camera comes to life. The arms reach out and pick up any stray garments on the bed or a nearby table, then fold them up neatly and easily. Once the operation is over, the arms glide back inside, the shutters close, and Lume reverts to being a regular old lamp, the type of item you could easily forget about. Owners have complete control over when it comes into action and when it shuts down.

The engineers spent hours recording people folding clothes by hand, then used that footage to teach the robot by duplicating those gestures thousands of times until it all felt quite natural. To make it extra safe, they added soft fabric covers to the joints to keep fingers from getting entangled, and the motors simply slow down whenever something other than cloth appears in the workspace. Sensors monitor the area around the lamp and shut everything down if a child or pet gets too close. Because it never moves, it never needs to deal with scuffed floors or doorways. That was arguably the single best choice they ever made, in my opinion, because it eliminated the most of the challenges that mobile robots typically encounter in actual houses.

Tan and Fung chose materials that nearly feel like the nice things in your hand, such as smooth metal, warm timber tones that exude quality, and finishes that don’t attract fingerprints like a magnet and won’t scratch easily. They wanted Lume to remain a long-term presence in your living room or bedroom, without feeling out of place as it ages. The entire setup arrived ready to go, with no trouble, calibration, or mapping required. Early testers just placed it in the location where they regularly fold their clothing and let it go to work.

Preorders started at $1500 for a single light and $2500 for the matching pair. To ensure a position, simply put down a deposit, and the first shipments will begin this summer. Compared to the 20,000-dollar humanoid robots making headlines, Lume feels more like a high-end appliance than a wild west experiment.