German robotics company Circus SE has unveiled its CA-1 AI-powered autonomous food production system in Abu Dhabi, marking its first deployment outside Europe. The launch follows the company’s receipt of regulatory approval under the UAE’s Emirates Conformity Assessment Scheme (ECAS) in July 2026, enabling the commercial deployment of its autonomous systems in the country.
Circus is deploying the CA-1 in partnership with Royal Prestige Food Contracts, a UAE-based contract catering company that produces more than three million meals annually. Its clients include the UAE Army, the UAE Royal Palace, UAE ministries, Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) and the Red Crescent.
The deployment introduces autonomous food production technology designed to automate multiple stages of meal preparation, from ingredient storage and cooking to plating and cleaning. According to Circus, the CA-1 can produce up to 120 hot meals per hour without human intervention.
Automating Food Production
The CA-1 system combines refrigerated ingredient storage, automated induction cooking, robotic plating and a self-cleaning dishwasher system. It can manage up to 36 refrigerated ingredient silos and prepare as many as five meals in parallel, supporting a variety of dishes, including stews, curries, pasta, salads and sautés.
Circus says the system can handle more than 200 meals per load. Its operations are managed by CircusOS, the company’s proprietary operating system, which supports predictive diagnostics, inventory management and real-time recipe adjustments.
The system will use ingredients sourced through UAE supply chains, with Royal Prestige managing local sourcing. The approach combines automated food preparation with locally supplied ingredients, integrating the technology into the existing food service ecosystem.
UAE Becomes Circus’s First Market Outside Europe
Circus has positioned the UAE as a strategic market for expanding its autonomous food production technology beyond Europe. The company’s ECAS certification, issued by the Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology in July 2026, cleared the way for commercial deployment in the country.
Nikolas Bullwinkel, Founder and CEO of Circus SE, said the UAE was selected because of its pace in moving from pilot projects to large-scale implementation.
“We chose the UAE for our first deployment outside Europe because few markets move this quickly from pilot to scale,” Bullwinkel said. He added that the country’s investment in AI infrastructure creates opportunities to introduce autonomous food production as part of its broader technology ecosystem.
Bullwinkel also said Circus expects the UAE to become one of its largest markets in the medium term. Chef Abdallah Youssef, CEO of Royal Prestige Food Contracts, said the company intends to help lead the adoption of autonomous food production in the region. As Circus’s launch partner, Royal Prestige will introduce the technology to clients while continuing to support local supply chains and use UAE-sourced ingredients.
The deployment represents Circus’s entry into the UAE’s food service sector with an autonomous production system designed to integrate ingredient management, cooking and cleaning into a single operation. Its performance and adoption in the market will provide an indication of how such systems can be incorporated into large-scale catering operations.
