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LG just made a big splash at its CES 2026 press conference with the official unveiling of CLOiD, an AI-powered home robot that's a central focus of the company's "Zero Labor Home" vision. And I got a taste of what this robot can do as it rolled around stage, fist-bumped presenters and (yes) started some laundry.
Actually, starting laundry is a bit of a stretch. But we did see the robot take a towel from an LG exec with its outstretched hand and then place the towel in a washing machine. The movements were quite slow and deliberate, but at least CLOiD performed the task fairly well. And we got a glimpse of all the other chores and activities this robot could perform.
What is CLOiD?
According to LG, CLOiD is a robot that uses AI and vision-based tech to perform household tasks like cooking and laundry. And it connects with LG's ThinQ ecosystem and connected appliances to automate aspects of home life.
CLOiD has a head unit with expressive eyes, a torso with two articulated arms and a wheeled base equipped with autonomous navigation. Each arm has seven degrees of freedom, and each hand includes five independently actuated fingers for fine manipulation.
And we could see these arms and hands in action when CLOiD accepted the piece of laundry with its outstretched limbs. It took the towel and placed it in the washing machine without dropping it, which is a positive sign. I'm just not sure I would trust this thing with the dishes.
CLOiD has a personality and AI smarts
During its interactions with LG reps, CLOiD spoke in a soft and assured male voice, and it seemed to anticipate the needs of speakers — at one point, it offered a bottle of water to a speaker who seemed parched.
The head of CLOiD doubles as an AI home hub. With a built-in display, speaker, cameras and various sensors — plus voice-based generative AI — the robot can communicate through language and facial expressions.
CLOiD can also "talk" to LG appliances, so it could start the oven for you while you're on your way home, or it could change the temperature for you in the room if you're feeling hot or cold.
LG has also shown clips of CLOiD just being helpful around the house, whether it's acting as a personal fitness coach for your workout or just reaching an item on a high shelf for someone in a wheelchair.
CLOiD is just a concept for now, but I'm looking forward to seeing this robot up close to see what else it can do. Check out our CES 2026 live blog for all the latest tech and gadget news live from Las Vegas.
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