Cartken, Stirling Ultracold partner for autonomous ultra-low temperature material transport

California-based autonomous robotics company Cartken and ultra-low temperature (ULT) storage provider Stirling Ultracold announced a partnership.

Together, the companies are launching an autonomous offering designed to transport temperature-sensitive samples, reagents and other materials across life sciences, healthcare, research and industrial environments.

Multi-level autonomous navigation in extreme temperatures

This integration combines the outdoor, indoor and multi-level autonomous navigation capabilities of the Cartken Hauler robot with Stirling’s ULT25NEU Portable Ultra-Low Temperature Freezer. The companies said the combined offering enables fully autonomous movement of critical materials that require storage temperatures as low as -86°C (-122.8°F).

"This partnership showcases how innovation in robotics and cold storage can come together to solve real-world challenges," said Christian Bersch, co-founder & CEO of Cartken. "It unlocks new possibilities for laboratories, hospitals and industrial campuses needing reliable, autonomous cold-chain transport to streamline their intralogistics workflows."

Today, many facilities still rely on manual transport for temperature-sensitive materials-requiring employees to physically move samples between labs, storage areas and production lines. Existing automation offerings, if present, are often limited to a single building or floor, leaving cross-campus logistics fragmented and inefficient. The companies said the Cartken-Stirling integration solves this gap by offering end-to-end autonomous transport across entire sites, including elevator integration to navigate multi-level facilities.

“At Stirling Ultracold, we’re proud to be the industry leader in portable ultra-low temperature solutions, and we’re committed to pushing the boundaries of innovation,” said Jason Gillum, inside sales manager, Stirling Ultracold. “Our partnership with Cartken and their autonomous robotics platform is yet another example of how we continue to lead the way in next-generation cold storage applications.”

Cartken and Stirling Ultracold highlighted the following features of the new autonomous offering:

• Temperature range: From -86°C to -20°C (-122.8°F to -4°F), adjustable in 1°C increments.
• Storage volume and capacity: 25 liters (0.9 cu.ft.), 18 standard 2” boxes.
• Internal storage dimensions: 332 x 221 x 340 mm / (13.1 x 8.7 x 13.4 in.).
• Wireless monitoring: Continuous temperature monitoring and logging.
• Easy indoor & outdoor mobility: Autonomously handles transitions between buildings, corridors and outdoor pathways, including rough terrain.
• Elevator integration: Compatible with various elevator systems for uninterrupted multi-floor transport.
• All-weather & day/night navigation: Operates reliably in rain, sun, snow and extreme temperatures, and in any lighting conditions, 24/7.