Shakey was the first mobile robot able to reason about its actions in its environment.
The Stanford Research Institute developed Shakey between 1966 and 1972. It combined sensors, a computer, software, and wheels so it could perceive surroundings and plan sequences of actions instead of merely repeating a fixed motion. The project was led by researchers including Charles Rosen, Nils Nilsson, and Bertram Raphael.
Shakey could navigate rooms, push objects, and create plans using symbolic artificial intelligence. Its software included STRIPS, a planning system developed by Richard Fikes and Nilsson. The robot moved slowly, but its importance lay in linking perception, planning, and physical action.
Shakey is not generally described as the first mobile robot ever built. Earlier machines could move, but they did not combine autonomous navigation with general-purpose reasoning in the same influential way. The project helped establish foundations for robotics planning and modern autonomous systems.