Project Kiwi: Disney's Groot-Like Walking Robot

A New Era of Disney Characters

The scene unfolds as a cinematic character extends a greeting. Such encounters are familiar when in the company of Imagineers, yet this instance feels distinct. This isn't a performer in a costume; it’s a robotic creation. Unlike the numerous animatronic figures found within the parks, its movement isn’t restricted to a single location.

This character approaches, connected only by a slender cable utilized for programming. The walk is fluid, with arms swinging naturally and feet landing with realism. The body exhibits a sway mirroring human locomotion. It’s accurately described as ambling. This is Project Kiwi, a compact, independently moving robotic performer – a pioneering achievement for Disney and a significant advancement in robotics.

The Pursuit of Realistic Characters

For decades, the central ambition within themed entertainment has been the creation of a fully mobile, bipedal character that faithfully replicates the appearance, personality, and size of its original counterpart. Various static iterations of this concept have been successfully implemented in parks globally.

Examples include the remarkably lifelike Na’Vi Shaman, the A1000 technology powering characters like Hondo Ohnaka from Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, and the expressively animated Belle from Beauty and the Beast at Tokyo Disneyland. Furthermore, intriguing mobile experiments, such as the autonomously navigating droid “Jake,” have been conducted.

Introducing Project Kiwi

The miniature character boasts meticulously detailed textures on its face, hands, and feet. It’s adorned in a weathered red flight suit, reminiscent of those seen in the films. Its eyes are remarkably expressive as it makes eye contact and gestures. This represents a pivotal moment, eagerly anticipated by both Disney Imagineers and park visitors – a genuine, walkaround character at an appropriate scale, specifically kid-friendly.

During a recent visit to Walt Disney Imagineering in Southern California, I witnessed firsthand how close they are to realizing this long-held ambition. A bipedal platform, developed entirely in-house over the past three years by WDI researchers and roboticists, is currently disguised as a Groot figure, approximately two and a half feet tall.

While the current iteration of Kiwi is themed as Groot, it’s crucial to understand that this is fundamentally a platform. This means it could manifest in this form upon its eventual park debut, or adopt an entirely different persona. Having a specific character during development is vital for gauging the believability of the creation.

Future Development

It’s important to note that Kiwi remains a project in progress. Immediate deployment in the parks isn’t anticipated; substantial work remains to refine its functionality and interactions with guests. WDI currently has no concrete plans for immediate park integration.

However, even in its current state, it’s an impressive engineering accomplishment that genuinely conveys the elusive quality Disney consistently strives for in its figures: a compelling presence.

This robotic platform represents a significant step towards a future where fully interactive, free-roaming characters enhance the Disney park experience.

The Genesis of Project Kiwi

I had the opportunity to speak with Scott LaValley, Principal R&D Imagineer and the lead on Project Kiwi, alongside Jon Snoddy, Advanced Development Studio Executive SVP, to learn about the platform’s development over the last several years.

LaValley explains, “Project KIWI began approximately three years ago with the aim of discovering how to bring our smaller characters to life at their authentic scale and in a believable manner.” He continues, noting that this is a particularly exciting period for bipedal robotics, and that Disney’s unique blend of technology, artistry, and innovation is enabling the creation of characters previously thought impossible.

Disney Imagineering’s process is often likened to that of a startup, identifying a problem and then collaborating across departments to find a solution. This approach is remarkably free of ego, frequently utilizing readily available components alongside internally designed and patented technologies.

The interconnectedness of Imagineering departments – encompassing ride design, show systems, special effects, animatronics, Tech Studio R&D, and Disney Research – facilitates the sharing of solutions throughout the entire process.

Underlying all efforts is the crucial element of storytelling, guiding the project toward more immersive and engaging experiences for park guests.

Image Credits: Walt Disney Imagineering R&D Inc.

The primary objective with Kiwi was to create a character capable of independent walking and interaction with park visitors. However, the figure’s scale and the demands of interaction and locomotion meant that existing “off-the-shelf” platforms were unsuitable. Currently, only a limited number of viable bipedal robotics platforms exist globally, with most designed for industrial applications or as marketing displays rather than truly autonomous systems.

To achieve this goal, Imagineering turned to its R&D division and LaValley’s team. LaValley previously worked at Boston Dynamics, contributing to the initial development of the Atlas biped robot.

The project required a battery-powered biped robot capable of autonomous interaction with guests, and the execution of programmed gestures and expressions. The team dedicated the next three years to building a custom solution, as detailed below.

Image Credits: Walt Disney Imagineering R&D Inc.

Kiwi’s design intentionally lacks an internal operator, leveraging the human brain’s instinctive ability to perceive spatial limitations. To achieve this compact size, the team engineered a custom skeleton with space for every motor and actuator needed to achieve 50 degrees of freedom, while maintaining a humanoid form suitable for character theming.

The initial frame was prototyped using custom-printed polymers, eventually transitioning to custom metal parts created with industrial printers. The complexity of the required armatures and segments made traditional milling or casting impractical. The resulting hollow metal skeleton incorporates an “air conduit” for cooling the motors and actuators, with air intake through the suit’s collar, circulation via embedded fans, and exhaust near the base. Future iterations will utilize the clothing as a shroud to optimize airflow near the feet.

Despite some audible noise, even in its current state, the sound level is remarkably low, allowing for clear audio output from a speaker for conversational interaction.

As showcased in the exclusive video, the lower sections were developed first. Early testing within Imagineering involved the legs and torso moving, bouncing, shuffling, and strutting through the workspace. This is likely the only environment where a robotic torso can tiptoe past someone during lunch without causing a stir.

A substantial amount of custom robotics engineering went into the Kiwi platform. During the demonstration, young Groot was equipped with a safety tether and control cable for live programming, but the rig itself was self-supporting, operating on onboard battery power. LaValley indicated a current battery life of approximately 45 minutes, with improvements anticipated in the final version. A next-generation skeleton, lighter and more efficient, is already in development.

Image Credits: Walt Disney Imagineering R&D Inc. / Walt Disney Imagineering R&D Inc.

The legs incorporate a kinetic counter-balance system, offsetting the force required for movement and foot placement, enhancing power efficiency and speed. This is similar to a spring-loaded gate that simplifies opening, but utilizes robotic limbs instead of springs.

The feet are designed to realistically support the figure’s weight, adding to the believability that is often absent in externally supported characters that merely simulate foot placement. LaValley demonstrated that the figure could maintain balance even when gently pushed or supported by a hand resting on its shoulder. This self-balancing capability, unconscious for humans, must be engineered and programmed into ambulatory robots.

The creation involved numerous patentable inventions, including a gear system that transfers energy across joints, allowing them to share motors and reducing component count. This enables smaller, more compact motor and actuator packages to fit within the theming.

To minimize wiring – a common point of failure – the team developed origami-like circuit boards connected by integrated flex cabling. These boards are segmented and mounted to the exterior of the hollow “bones,” wrapping around limbs and body parts to create localized control systems and reduce the need for extensive harnessing.

Existing actuators lacked the necessary capabilities, so the team built them from scratch. LaValley showed me a ring containing numerous iterations of a dozen actuator elements, representing years of engineering, experimentation, and progress.

The next phase for Project Kiwi involves new actuators capable of dynamically applying torque, coupled with enhanced sensing for improved stability and reaction to uneven terrain or interactions. Given the potential for free-roaming character interactions, guests will inevitably want to take pictures and even hug the figures. The skeleton must be able to sense and respond quickly and smoothly to these unexpected inputs to maintain balance and a natural appearance.

Image Credits: Walt Disney Imagineering R&D Inc. / Walt Disney Imagineering R&D Inc.

Transitioning from a pure Inverse Kinematics (IK) system to a fully torque-sensing system will allow the platform to make on-the-fly adjustments, compensating for terrain or interactions with performers and guests.

The team’s custom work on gearing, motors, and actuation has resulted in remarkably smooth and natural movements for Kiwi’s arms and legs. Quick waves, shrugs, dance moves, and even boxing jabs appear convincingly lifelike.

The team also developed custom performance software that allows Kiwi to exhibit different gaits with layered personality. The base layer is an IK-style gait system for stability, while adding personality layers influences the walk, maintaining balance. Bouncy, jaunty walks, limps, or sad walks are all achieved through coordinated movements of arms and head, shifting the center of mass and momentum. The underlying gait system seamlessly integrates external inputs.

The current prototype software features a series of pre-set behaviors, with a timeline interface for programming new actions by adjusting toggles or curves that control movement. Changes are immediately visible, with Groot’s “mood” becoming apparent in his walk.

One moment he is bouncing along swinging his arms jauntily, clearly happy to be there. Then the next moment his arms are slumped, his head is hung and he is slowly plodding — clearly sad to be leaving the fun behind. It’s a remarkable bit of performance software.

Furthermore, the team is developing a sensory package to enhance Kiwi’s understanding of its surroundings and to identify people and their faces. Eye contact is a powerful emotive tool, and this capability will be crucial for immersive experiences.

Even without the sensing software, I found the experience of a 2.5ft Groot making eye contact, smiling, and waving to be incredibly transportive. Multiple times during our interaction, I momentarily forgot I was interacting with a robot.

Image Credits: Walt Disney Imagineering R&D Inc. / Walt Disney Imagineering R&D Inc.

While Project Kiwi still requires significant development before appearing in the parks, it is well on its way to becoming viable for stage performances, photo opportunities, and eventually, free-roaming deployment.

This is the overarching vision. Snoddy explains that the goal is to integrate beloved Disney characters into the guest experience, transforming the entire park into a living, transportive environment, rather than limiting immersion to individual rides or dark rooms. And to achieve this at the correct scale, creating genuine characters capable of inspiring belief.

The history of Imagineering is marked by robotics. From Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln to the expressive Na’Vi Shaman within a dark ride, to characters that perform in well-lit spaces, Project Kiwi represents the next frontier, allowing characters to step off the pedestal and into the guest’s world.

Human-Robot Interaction (HRI) is a rapidly growing field, focused on improving communication between humans and robots, often in industrial settings. However, I believe the most compelling work in this area is happening within Imagineering R&D. With over 100 million annual visitors to Disney’s parks, the opportunities for robotic character interaction are constantly expanding. Projects like Kiwi will generate new data and insights, driving innovation in this field.

Ultimately, we will have the opportunity to meet our favorite characters looking and acting more realistically than ever before.