Boston Dynamics Stretch
Mobile robot with a pallet-sized omnidirectional base, an arm and a vacuum gripper that unloads cases from floor-loaded trailers and containers onto a telescopic conveyor. Boston Dynamics unveiled it in March 2021 and has sold it since March 2022; its 2026 brochure states 600 to 800 cases per hour without detailing measurement conditions, and up to 700 have been reported at DHL. A second generation was announced on 3 November 2026.
- Year
- 2021
- Origin
- United States
- Autonomy
- L3 · Conditional autonomy
- Dataset review
- 2026-11 · Methodology & evidence levels
What it does, and on what evidence
Five mandatory fields on every sheet. A product page proves neither commercial availability nor full autonomy: here we separate what has been documented from what is announced.
- 1 · Task
- Unload cardboard cases from floor-loaded trailers and containers and place them on a telescopic conveyor at the warehouse inbound dock.
- 2 · Autonomy by task
Does on its own
Inside the trailer it detects cases with machine-learning-trained vision and decides in real time with no box sizes to program; it retrieves cases that fall, coordinates the telescopic conveyor wirelessly and, when done, backs out on its own to the container entrance.
A person steps in
An operator drives it to the dock with a wired pendant, starts it from a touchscreen console after a safety check and moves it to another door when it finishes; one console can manage several robots. A LiDAR virtual perimeter stops it if someone steps inside.[Boston Dynamics, 2026][Boston Dynamics, 2025][Boston Dynamics]
- 3 · Strongest evidence
Operational use2025-05-13
DHL Supply Chain introduced it commercially in North America in 2023 and later expanded to the UK and Europe; per the May 2025 joint release it has reached unloading rates of up to 700 cases per hour, and DHL signed a memorandum of understanding (not a firm order) for more than 1,000 additional units. Gap Inc. uses it in several distribution centres, such as Gallatin (Tennessee), according to a case study published by the maker.[Boston Dynamics, 2025][Boston Dynamics, 2025]
- 4 · Access
- Commercial product
On sale since March 2022; the first commercial purchase was a multi-year $15 million pre-order by DHL Supply Chain. Price not published; sold through the sales team.
- 5 · Lifecycle
- Current generation
The figures on this sheet come from the February 2026 brochure (first generation). Stretch Gen 2 was announced on 3 November 2026: up to 1,000 cases per hour, a rate the maker says depends heavily on case weight and how orderly the load is; battery for two shifts and 90% charge in about 75 min. Its availability has not been published.
[Boston Dynamics, 2021][Robotics 24/7, 2022][Boston Dynamics, 2026]
Configurations
Variants of the same robot; not counted as separate platforms.
Stretch Case Pick
Case picking: it identifies, grasps and stacks cases to build pallets up to 1.8 m tall, scans barcodes and updates the WMS through Orbit, and tows pallets of up to 1,300 kg. According to the February 2026 brochure the robot weighs 1,500 kg, drives at up to 2 m/s, needs aisles at least 3 m wide and starts with wide-aisle ambient racking; narrower aisles and cold storage are future developments. The brochure does not say since when it ships.[Boston Dynamics, 2026]
Spec sheet
Manufacturer maxima under declared conditions; not simultaneous. The test condition is shown under each value.
- Weight
- 1.3 t
- trailer and container unloading configuration (02/2026 brochure); the case-picking configuration states 1,500 kg
- Payload
- 23 kg
- maximum weight per case (50 lb) handled by the vacuum gripper; not a carried payload. Rectangular cardboard cases with sides of 15 to 91 cm
- Operating time
- 16 h
- “up to 16 hours” per the brochure; in 2022 the maker attributed 16 h to an optional high-capacity battery and “more than a full shift” to the standard one. Fast charge to 90% in about 2 h under nominal conditions
- Temperature range
- 5 … 45 °C
- operating ambient temperature
Primary source quality: Manufacturer / operator
Backed by:[Boston Dynamics, 2026][Boston Dynamics, 2026][Robotics 24/7, 2022]
Taxonomy profile
Where the platform sits on the four axes of the reference framework.
Autonomy
Conditional autonomy- L0
- L1
- L2
- L3
- L4
- L5
Makes local decisions on unexpected events; needs occasional remote supervision.
Coordination
Coordinated- Standalone
- Coordinated
- Collaborative swarm
Shares state and telemetry through a base station or central server.
Control
primary: Supervised mission- FPV
- Teleop
- Supervised
- BVLOS
- RL/VLA
supported: Teleoperation · Supervised mission
Perception
1 sensing modalities- RGB cameras
Operating environments
- Warehouse / logistics
Sectors
- Logistics & last mile
- Advanced manipulation
Ideal business case
Trailer and container unloading in warehouses