ArduPilot
Autopilot for drones, rovers and boats
Robotics & embodied AIAutopilot firmwareGPL-3.0Runs locallyC++Advanced
🐳 Docker pulls
📦 PyPI downloads / month
📦 npm downloads / month
🚀 Latest release ·
What is ArduPilot?
ArduPilot is the autopilot firmware flying a large share of the world's open drones, plus ground rovers, boats and submarines.
Why people choose ArduPilot
- Supports aircraft, rovers, boats and submarines
- Enormous hardware compatibility
- Two decades of field testing
ArduPilot at a glance
| Category | Robotics & embodied AI |
| Type | Autopilot firmware |
| License | GPL-3.0 |
| Runs locally | Yes |
| Built with | C++ |
| Skill level | Advanced |
| Best for | anything autonomous that moves — in the air, on the ground or on water |
Latest releases
Open-source alternatives to ArduPilot
Other open-source robotics & embodied ai tools worth comparing:
GenesisGenerate robotic worlds from a text prompt
LeRobotTrain real robots with the Hugging Face stack
MuJoCoThe physics engine most robotics research runs on
Stable-Baselines3Reliable RL algorithms you can actually trust
openpi (π0)Open weights for robot foundation models
GymnasiumThe standard interface for reinforcement learning
PX4The autopilot behind most commercial drones
AutowareA complete open-source self-driving stack
Isaac LabMassively parallel robot training on NVIDIA GPUs
ROS 2The operating system layer of modern robotics
Nav2Make a mobile robot navigate on its own
Diffusion PolicyTeach a robot by showing it, using diffusion
HabitatTrain agents to act in photorealistic homes
MoveIt 2Motion planning and manipulation for robot arms
GazeboSimulate a whole robot, sensors includedArduPilot head-to-head
ArduPilot vs GenesisArduPilot vs LeRobotArduPilot vs MuJoCoArduPilot vs Stable-Baselines3ArduPilot vs openpi (π0)ArduPilot vs GymnasiumArduPilot vs PX4ArduPilot vs AutowareArduPilot vs Isaac LabArduPilot vs ROS 2ArduPilot vs Nav2ArduPilot vs Diffusion PolicyArduPilot vs HabitatArduPilot vs MoveIt 2ArduPilot vs Gazebo
FAQ
Is ArduPilot free?
ArduPilot is free and open-source (GPL-3.0 license), so you can use, self-host and modify it at no cost.
Can I run ArduPilot locally?
Yes. ArduPilot is designed to run on your own machine or server, keeping your data private.
What is the best alternative to ArduPilot?
Popular open-source alternatives include Genesis, LeRobot, MuJoCo. See the comparisons above to choose.
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