- Disney will bring a stand-alone Olaf to two parks in early 2026
- Looks even cooler than the BDX droids from Star Wars
- Olaf was built by Disney Imagineering
Disney Imagineering has already created countless animatronics and robots, maybe not as cute as the BDX droids from Star Wars, but the next one is so real it’s awesome. Olaf, the funny walking, talking snowman we all know Frozenis now a reality in the form of an incredibly animated, realistic and perhaps even life-sized robot.
And it’s not a proof of concept: Olaf will arrive in the frozen worlds of Disneyland Hong Kong and Disneyland Paris in early 2026. Nor will he be on track, as described in the latest episode of the Disney franchise. We call this fantasy. Recently released on YouTube, it is a new generation robot character that can provide full interaction with the audience.
Although this robot from Disney Imagineering looks a little different from previous generations of the same group and even BDX droids, Olaf is definitely the next step here. It was built, prototyped and designed by the same group, Disney Research, in Zurich, Switzerland.
In addition to actuators and other physical components, the focus is on improving learning, a form of artificial intelligence that allows the robot to train thousands of movements in a computer simulation. Instead of engineers having to manually program each step, Olaf “learns” through trial and error how to walk, balance and gesture until his movements feel natural.
It is also important to note that although AI is used to train the robot’s movements, No an AI character. Olaf is always controlled or directed by a Disney actor. It’s a similar approach to what Disney took with the BDX droids: autonomy can help with movement, training or some pre-recorded actions, but at the end of the day, Olaf is still a character, like when he met Mickey mouse.
Similar to Walt Disney Animation Studios’ Olaf animation work, Imagineering develops Olaf’s walking and other movements on a much faster timeline than the robot can perform. This is what Olaf looks like when he leaves the screen of Arendelle and enters the world of Frozen in a Disney park: he glides effortlessly along the sidewalk, moving his head lightly as he admires the world around him.
Olaf, like other Disney animatronics, tries to take these characters from the screen and the stories and portray them in real life in a way that allows guests and park visitors to interact with them. Olaf had three principles in mind: “lively, curious and unmistakably himself.”
Given Nvidia CEO and founder Jensen Huang’s comments about the robot, I think Disney was right: “How did Disney create all this technology and reduce it to a little snowman just to make me happy? The magic is so amazing.”
Unlike roaming BDX droids, Walt Disney A-1000 Animatronic or even an attraction-installed Audio-Animatronic, you can chat with Olaf or even watch him walk towards you in Disneyland Hong Kong and Disneyland Paris. It’s not yet clear whether these interactions will be stored, recorded or even autonomous, but the project is ambitious nonetheless.
We experienced a similar interaction at Disneyland in Anaheim, California, over the summer when HERBIE came out. The Fantastic Four When the robots arrived at the parks to meet, the robot responded. It’s also important to note that HERBIE was created for the parks at the request of Matt Shakman, the film’s director, and that Imagineering completed it in just a few months.
However, I am more optimistic than ever about how Disney’s expertise in robotics and technology will continue to manifest itself in increasingly immersive experiences in the future. And in terms of hardware, Olaf’s eyes and mouth are fully adjustable, and his carrot-shaped nose and two branching arms can be easily removed and replaced. I can’t imagine Disney would just let guests remove one though.
What is clear, however, is that unlike the 1X Neo Beta or other humanoid robots that have received mixed reactions from the general population, Disney’s forms of robotics and animatronics are fun and easy to use, and we really want to see more of them and have meaningful interactions with them.
Imagineering is clearly working on other projects and I can’t wait to see when they arrive, as well as figuring out how to meet Olaf at Hong Kong Disneyland and Disneyland Paris.