Last Updated 9 minutes ago
Affiliate Disclosure: This article contains an affiliate link. If you purchase Beni through the link in this article, HowToFilmSchool may receive a commission at no additional cost to you. I have also personally purchased a Beni through the Kickstarter campaign with my own money. Mondo Robotics did not provide me with a free unit, and this is not a hands-on review.
Beni is a small autonomous camera robot built by Mondo Robotics. It can follow a subject, travel at nearly 18 mph, shoot 4K video, navigate different terrain, recover when it falls over and even jump over obstacles.
Basically, someone took an action camera, put it on a small robotic platform and taught the thing to chase you around.
[CHECK OUT BENI ON KICKSTARTER]
What Is the Beni Camera Robot?
Beni is an all-terrain robotic camera developed by Mondo Robotics.
Instead of placing a camera on a tripod or carrying a gimbal, you put Beni on the ground, select a subject and allow the robot to move with them.
Mondo lists the current Beni camera robot specs as:
- 4K video at 30fps
- 3K video at 60fps
- 1080p video at 100fps
- 17.9 mph / 29 km/h maximum speed
- 10-inch / 25 cm maximum obstacle jump
- Approximately 1.5 hours of battery life per battery
- Swappable batteries
- 3.86 lb / 1.75 kg weight
- 32GB internal storage
- microSD expansion
- Autonomous subject tracking
- Obstacle avoidance
- Automatic recovery after falling
- On-device processing for its primary tracking and filming functions
Mondo also offers manual control through its controller when you don’t want Beni deciding where to go.
Those numbers are impressive for something that weighs less than four pounds.
Beni Has Already Raised More Than $3.6 Million on Kickstarter
This isn’t a tiny Kickstarter campaign hoping someone notices it.
At the time I’m writing this, Beni has raised more than $3.6 million USD from roughly 5,900 backers against an original Kickstarter goal of $50,000.
That puts the campaign at more than 7,300% funded.
It reached its original funding goal within approximately 10 minutes of launching.
That’s a ridiculous response for a completely new camera product from a relatively unknown robotics company.
The Kickstarter campaign launched on July 8, 2026 and is scheduled to end September 6, 2026.
Mondo currently estimates that Kickstarter units will begin shipping in October 2026.
Obviously, that last part comes with the standard Kickstarter warning. An estimated shipping date is an estimated shipping date.
Until thousands of finished units are coming off a production line and arriving at people’s doors, nothing is guaranteed.
Why Beni Is Interesting for Filmmakers
Most of Beni’s marketing is aimed at consumers: runners, parents, pet owners, athletes and people looking for an easy way to capture themselves without another camera operator.
For filmmakers, the more interesting question is whether the platform can be used beyond those intended applications.
A small, mobile camera system capable of following a subject at nearly 18 mph immediately suggests other possibilities: low-angle tracking shots, moving product shots, vehicle inserts, behind-the-scenes coverage and simple remote camera moves.
That is what interests me about Beni.
I am less interested in whether it can automatically follow someone jogging through a park than whether it can become another useful camera-support tool on a real production.
If the movement is smooth enough, the tracking is reliable enough and the camera quality holds up, there may be applications for it that go well beyond what Mondo Robotics is currently demonstrating.
Low-Angle Tracking Shots
This is probably the most obvious application.
Beni sits extremely close to the ground.
For normal consumer footage, that can actually be a limitation. Most shots are going to naturally have a low camera position.
For filmmaking, that limitation becomes interesting.
Tracking someone’s feet. Following a skateboard. Moving alongside a bicycle. Running beside a vehicle. Following an actor through a hallway. Moving through a restaurant or commercial space.
Those are shots that can normally require a gimbal operator, dolly, slider, wheelchair rig, vehicle rig or some other form of camera support.
Beni isn’t replacing those tools. It is potentially creating a very cheap additional option.
Car Shots
This might end up being one of my favourite uses.
Beni can travel at up to 17.9 mph.
That’s obviously nowhere near fast enough for normal automotive filmmaking on public roads.
But parking lots, driveways, racetracks, controlled locations and slow rolling shots are another story.
A tiny camera travelling inches off the pavement beside a wheel could create a great sense of speed even when the vehicle itself isn’t moving very quickly.
Low-angle shots make movement look faster.
That alone could make Beni useful for certain automotive shoots.
Behind-the-Scenes Filming
This may actually become one of its most practical uses.
It’s becoming more and more common for Cinematographers and Gaffers to document their setups for notes, or even social media content.
A camera robot that can follow me while I’m lighting, shooting or moving around a location could create BTS footage without requiring another person whose only job is filming me.
For creators trying to document their own work, that could be incredibly useful.
Solo Filmmaking
One-person crews are becoming increasingly common.
Corporate shooters, YouTubers. Content creators, Documentary filmmakers, Small commercial crews, Social media producers.
There are plenty of situations where there simply isn’t another camera operator available.
A camera that can physically move with you is fundamentally different from putting your camera on a tripod and relying on AI autofocus.
That’s why I’m interested.
Beni Isn’t Going to Replace Your Cinema Camera
This needs to be said. Beni shoots 4K.
That doesn’t mean you’re buying an ARRI Alexa with wheels. Resolution is one of the least interesting specifications of a camera. Sensor size, dynamic range, colour reproduction, compression, bitrate, rolling shutter, noise and highlight handling
I haven’t tested Beni’s finished camera.
Until I do, I’m treating it like an action camera.
And that’s perfectly fine.
A GoPro doesn’t need to compete with an Alexa.
The reason you use a GoPro is because you can put it somewhere you can’t put an Alexa.
The same principle applies here.
If Beni gets me a shot that would otherwise require another crew member, a dolly, a specialized rig or twenty minutes of setup, then the image doesn’t necessarily have to be perfect.
It just has to be good enough to cut into the project.
For social content, BTS footage and web video, the bar is even lower.
The Tracking Still Needs to Prove Itself
This is the part of Beni I’m most skeptical about.
The marketing makes autonomous tracking look extremely polished. Real-world environments aren’t polished.
People cross in front of subjects.
Lighting changes. Rooms get dark. Objects block cameras.
Subjects suddenly change direction.
Floors aren’t perfectly flat.
What matters is how much Mondo can improve the tracking and navigation with each new firmware update.
If Beni can reliably follow someone walking, running or performing a relatively predictable movement, there are already useful filmmaking applications. Anything beyond that is a bonus.
Why I’m Buying Beni
I want to see if it can become:
- A tiny robotic dolly
- A low-angle tracking camera
- A BTS camera operator
- A vehicle camera
- A product-shot platform
- A social content camera
- A remote location scout camera
- Something completely different that none of us have thought of yet
That’s the reason I’m backing it.
Who Should Buy Beni?
If you’re a student, filmmaker, videographer, content creator or photographer who already owns the basic equipment you need and you’re interested in experimenting with completely new camera movement:
Beni is one of the more interesting products I’ve seen in a while.
Check Out the Beni Camera Robot
If you want to learn more about Beni, its specifications, Kickstarter packages and current pricing, you can check out the campaign through the link below.
[CHECK OUT BENI ON KICKSTARTER]
Affiliate Disclosure: The link above is an affiliate link. HowToFilmSchool may receive a commission if you make a purchase through it, at no additional cost to you. I personally purchased my own Beni through the Kickstarter campaign. Mondo Robotics did not provide me with a free unit or pay for this article.
