LEGO
The family-owned toy group behind SPIKE robotics kits. Its own SPIKE hardware sales ended in 2026, with app support promised through 2031.1245
A LEGO robot begins as a collection of parts. That is the attraction for a family that wants to build, take apart and change a machine, but the electronics bring a second decision: which hub and software will keep the project usable? LEGO's retirement of SPIKE hardware makes that distinction especially useful for anyone considering an older set.4567
Visit LEGO ↗From a workshop to programmable building
Ole Kirk Kristiansen founded the business in 1932. LEGO traces its beginnings to a carpenter's workshop and dates the present form of its interlocking brick to 1958. Robotics adds motors, sensors and code to that construction tradition. For a household, the question is whether building the mechanism is part of the fun, or an extra step before the activity the child really wants.167
The ownership remains tied to the founding family and a foundation. LEGO Holding owns the LEGO Group; KIRKBI, the Kirk Kristiansen family's holding company, owns 75% of LEGO Holding and the LEGO Foundation owns 25%. Those are company ownership relationships, not a stock-market route into an individual robotics product.2
Products and learning projects
LEGO Education's SPIKE Prime and SPIKE Essential have separate set identities and different hardware. Both now sit in a retired portfolio. LEGO ended its own SPIKE sales on June 30, 2026, and promises app support through June 30, 2031. The product pages direct prospective customers toward LEGO Education Science and Computer Science & AI. A reseller's remaining stock does not reset that support calendar.4567
SPIKE Prime
SPIKE Prime uses a Large Hub with six ports. Treat it as the exact Prime set when checking the hardware and coding tools. LEGO’s own SPIKE hardware sales have ended, while its published app-support commitment continues through June 30, 2031.46
SPIKE Essential
Essential uses a Small Hub with two ports, two motors, a Color Sensor and an external Light Matrix. These are its own kit components, not a smaller label for every Prime capability. Check the intended activity against the exact set.7
MINDSTORMS Robot Inventor
LEGO's support advice directs Robot Inventor owners to SPIKE for programming their hub after its dedicated app retired. For an inherited kit, start with the exact set number and the device you plan to use. The advice applies to Robot Inventor, without promising that every older MINDSTORMS controller, program or accessory can migrate.8
Choosing for a household
For an older LEGO robotics kit, ask to see the hub connect and the desired coding mode work on the device you will use. Check how to replace a battery or missing sensor, and put the published support end date beside the price. The group's financial scale cannot answer those practical questions.4
Which part of making a robot is the attraction?
Is the child most interested in building a mechanism, changing its code or following a ready-made activity? Before choosing an older set, write down its set number and hub, check the app on the device you will use, and confirm how you would replace a battery or missing sensor.458
Read more on Robots in the House
Sources and notes
- LEGO Group history
LEGO’s history identifies Ole Kirk Kristiansen, the 1932 workshop origins and the 1958 brick form. These are business and product milestones, not a robotics launch or a modern legal incorporation certificate. Source checked 2026-10-26.
- LEGO ownership
LEGO Holding owns the LEGO Group. KIRKBI owns 75% of LEGO Holding and the LEGO Foundation owns 25%. The intermediary and ownership percentages are retained; no listed share or provider ticker is inferred. Source checked 2026-10-26.
- LEGO H1 2026 results
August 25, 2026 results release for January through June. Revenue, operating profit and net profit are group-wide DKK billions. Display amounts are multiplied by one billion once, without currency conversion. The inspected release does not establish an accounting framework or education-only results. Source checked 2026-10-26.
- SPIKE portfolio retirement
LEGO’s retirement notice gives June 30, 2026 as the end of its own SPIKE hardware sales and June 30, 2031 as the app-support end. Remaining reseller stock does not reset those dates. No new-feature promise or successful device pairing is inferred. Source checked 2026-10-26.
- SPIKE Prime 45678 product
Exact SPIKE Prime 45678 page, with a retired label and links to newer education offerings. A stray reference to Essential in the page body does not merge the two sets. Source checked 2026-10-26.
- SPIKE Prime technical FAQ
Prime-specific Large Hub and kit components. These facts are retained as Prime context, not as capabilities of every LEGO kit. Source checked 2026-10-26.
- SPIKE Essential technical FAQ
Essential-specific Small Hub and kit components. Its documented streaming/block workflow does not establish Prime-equivalent capabilities or general Python support. Source checked 2026-10-26.
- Robot Inventor support
The packet used the maker’s indexed Robot Inventor support advice for migration to SPIKE. It does not promise migration for every EV3, NXT, program or accessory. Source checked 2026-10-26.
We use official disclosures and other identified sources. Company claims are attributed; these profiles do not represent hands-on product testing. Our editorial and AI-use policy.
