Kody sends US Odigo units after 30-store LuLu network launch

Kody Technolab (Consolidated) is dispatching its first Odigo demonstration and commercial units to the United States (US) in early H2 FY27 after establishing a live advertising network across 30 LuLu Retail stores in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The company is using the LuLu network as an operating reference while it builds a US channel-partner pipeline.

How large is Kody's LuLu Retail opportunity?

Kody's live network covers 30 LuLu Retail stores in the UAE, while LuLu Retail operates 267 stores across the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and plans to open 50 more by 2028. The current deployment therefore reaches roughly one in nine of LuLu Retail's existing stores, based on the store figures disclosed in the presentation.

Kody identifies expansion across further LuLu hypermarkets as a near-term priority. Odigo serves as both an assistant robot and a mobile advertising asset, so additional locations can add advertising inventory alongside robot deployments rather than requiring a separate media format for every store.

Kody describes the account structure as one retailer, many stores and one advertising network. The presentation does not give a timetable or unit target for growth beyond the current 30 UAE stores, but LuLu Retail's 50 planned openings by 2028 provide a disclosed expansion backdrop for the relationship.

What does Kody's live LuLu network demonstrate?

Kody's LuLu network demonstrates that Odigo is operating in a large-format retail environment with active advertising campaigns rather than only as a product demonstration. More than five global brands, including Colgate, are running campaigns across LuLu stores in the UAE, according to the presentation.

Odigo combines wayfinding, shopper interaction and advertising, and Kody says it can report campaign activity. The company contrasts that format with a static display and says an operating network gives prospective retailers a reference supported by real performance data, although it does not disclose campaign revenue or advertiser contract values.

The LuLu deployment forms part of a broader Odigo base of more than 150 units in the UAE and more than 50 in India. UAE venues also include BurJuman and Dubai Outlet Mall, while Indian locations include Jio World Drive, DLF Mall of India and LuLu Mall.

Kody reported fleet uptime above 95% and said it was improving monthly. In H2 FY27, management plans use-case-specific Odigo capabilities including product explanations, cross-selling and guidance to amenities in hypermarkets, malls, airports and car showrooms.

When will Kody begin its US Odigo rollout?

Kody said its first US consignment of Odigo demonstration and commercial units would ship in early H2 FY27. The shipment is an initial market-entry step, not a disclosed nationwide rollout or a confirmed chain-wide retail deployment.

Kody plans to showcase Odigo at NRF 2027 in New York in January and has engaged one of the Big Four consulting firms to shape its US go-to-market strategy. The company is also building a US partner network and says it will offer Odigo through both outright sales and a subscription model.

One prospective partner is at an advanced stage, according to management, and a demonstration Odigo is already with that partner. Kody says the partner's response has been strong and that it has identified potential customers, but the presentation does not disclose a signed US retail contract, customer name, deployment volume or revenue value.

Kody's US plan draws on its LuLu experience because both markets include large-format retailers. Management says the company is taking a working UAE model into the US rather than asking prospective customers to assess an untested concept.

Why is Kody targeting big-box retail in the US?

Kody is targeting big-box and large-format retail because standardised store layouts can make later installations resemble the first deployment. Management says the chains it has studied range from several hundred to more than 2,000 stores, creating the potential for repeatable deployment processes.

The company identifies deployment speed and deployment cost as important factors in scaling Odigo. Its stated initial US focus is hypermarkets and big-box stores, followed by malls, airports and car showrooms, where the robot can combine shopper assistance with advertising.

Kody says the LuLu network helps address a key commercial question for prospective US retailers: whether the model has operated at scale inside a large-format store estate. That is management's positioning rationale, rather than evidence of a commitment from a US retailer.

The company is building its local channel-partner pipeline alongside the planned early-H2 FY27 shipment. The presentation does not provide a US launch date beyond that shipment, nor does it quantify the number of Odigos intended for the market.

How does Kody's UAE network compare with India?

Kody's disclosed UAE Odigo fleet is currently larger than its Indian fleet, at more than 150 units versus more than 50 units. Management expects the India fleet to reach 200 to 250 units by the end of H2 FY27, although it has not disclosed a comparable UAE year-end unit target.

Advertising revenue reached Rs 2.20 crore in H1FY27, compared with nil in H1FY26, and Kody says India led that initial contribution. Management describes the UAE as one stage behind India in the monetisation cycle and expects the LuLu launch to contribute meaningfully in H2FY27.

Kody says advertising rates in the UAE are considerably higher than in India, without disclosing rate cards or a UAE advertising revenue target. The company closed H1FY27 with more than 300 robots deployed across India and the UAE, a total that includes products beyond Odigo.

The company’s revenue-share model requires Kody to bear deployment, transportation, installation and on-ground support costs when an Odigo goes live, while advertising income is earned over time. Management says the assets deployed in H1FY27 are intended to generate more advertising revenue in H2FY27 and beyond.

Conclusion

Kody's 30-store LuLu Retail network gives its US expansion plan an operating example involving more than five global advertising brands and a UAE Odigo fleet of more than 150 units. The company is using that reference to support US partner discussions, while its first demonstration and commercial units are scheduled for dispatch in early H2 FY27.

The next disclosed milestones are the early-H2 FY27 US consignment, the January NRF 2027 showcase and progress with the prospective partner that already has a demonstration unit. Kody also has a deployment pipeline of more than 500 units across India, the UAE and the wider GCC, though it says site readiness and partner schedules can move deployments and revenue between periods.