Guide · November 2026
Telepresence robot vs service robot
A telepresence robot lets your own staff be present from far away, and an autonomous service robot does one physical task by itself. Starlife Bella is a third kind: it greets and helps your guests, and Starlife supplies the person who runs it.
Three kinds of robot in plain words
Telepresence robot
A telepresence robot is a video call on wheels. A remote person sees through its camera, talks through its screen and drives it.
Double 3 is a known example. Double Robotics calls it a telepresence robot for the hybrid office, and a remote person drives it from a Mac, PC, iPad or iPhone.
OhmniLabs is known for telepresence and disinfection robots. Symbotic acquired the company in December 2024, but OhmniLabs states that it continues to sell and support Ohmni products.
temi sits between two kinds, because it is an autonomous assistant robot that also makes moving video calls.
Autonomous service robot
An autonomous service robot does a set task with no person in control, and the common task is delivery. Pudu BellaBot is a delivery robot that carries up to 40 kg on its trays. Bear Robotics Servi runs food and busses tables with a 66 lb capacity. Both find their own path and avoid obstacles.
Starlife Bella
Starlife Bella is a humanoid service robot with a friendly face and a chest display, and it moves on a wheeled base. Its job is to greet guests, answer them and keep them company.
The comparison table
| Telepresence robot | Autonomous service robot | Starlife Bella | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Examples | Double 3, Ohmni, temi | Pudu BellaBot, Bear Robotics Servi | Starlife Bella |
| Who talks to the guest | Your own remote staff member, by video | Usually nobody, because conversation is not its main job | A trained robot pilot, in the robot's own voice |
| Who drives | Your remote staff member, with help from obstacle avoidance | The robot drives itself on a mapped route | The Starlife robot pilot |
| Typical job | Remote work, remote classes, remote visits | Carry plates and items from A to B | Greet, answer, guide and keep company |
| Who staffs it | You do | Nobody during a run, but your staff load and unload it | Starlife does |
| Price model | Usually buy the robot | Buy or lease the robot | Pay by the hour |
Public prices
Double 3 is listed at $4,499 with no recurring fees, although the official checkout showed it as out of stock on November 14, 2026. Confirm availability. The temi site shows a price of $3,999.
Pudu and Bear Robotics show no price on their product pages. RobotLAB, a US reseller, does list BellaBot from $14,500, or $409 a month.
Bella costs from $10 an hour, and most deployments cost $10 to $20 an hour.
Prices checked in November 2026. They change often; check the linked pages.
Choose this if
A telepresence robot is the right choice if your own people need to be in a place they cannot travel to. A remote worker or a remote student is a common driver.
An autonomous service robot fits when the job is to move things on the same route many times a day, and the clear case is a restaurant that runs plates from kitchen to table.
Choose Starlife Bella if the job is to talk with guests and you have no spare staff to do it, because Bella comes with its robot pilot.
When a telepresence robot is the better choice
When your own staff already have time to drive it, a telepresence robot is both the better choice and the cheaper one.
Think of a receptionist who covers two buildings. With a telepresence robot, that person can greet visitors in the second lobby as well. You pay once for the robot, and your employee knows your business better than any outside person.
The limit is staff time. Someone on your payroll must be at the screen for every hour the robot works, and a telepresence robot with no free driver stands still.
How Starlife Bella works
Bella is not autonomous. It is a remote-controlled robot that a trained robot pilot controls live from a laptop, with AI assistance, and Starlife provides the person at the controls.
Along with the robot pilot, Starlife provides the driving and the maintenance. You pay by the hour, with no big contract, and only for what you use.
Bella speaks more than 30 languages, with live translation both ways. Guests hear the robot's own voice instead of a video call.
Because Bella has built-in 5G, it needs no customer Wi-Fi. It runs a full 8-hour shift on one charge and works indoors only.
You can hire Bella today as a mall concierge, a companion in senior living, a front-desk receptionist and a store greeter. See the specs.
Bella does not carry plates, so if you need items moved, an autonomous delivery robot is the right tool.
The normal way to start is a 14-day pilot, and lead time is about one week.
If the job you have in mind is conversation, it is worth seeing Bella talk with guests at your site. Book a demo.