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A robotic approach to homebuilding in the Palisades fire zone

August 6, 2025

From a scorched residential lot in the Pacific Palisades, a robotic arm is piecing together wooden planks to make frames for future homes.

The demonstration was part of a launch event held on Wednesday, Aug. 5, by construction-technology company Cosmic Buildings to showcase its new mobile “robotic micro factory” set to begin operations.

Founded in 2022, the San Francisco-based company took to Los Angeles earlier this year, after the Palisades and Eaton fires. Cosmic plans to construct interior panels from its backyard factory and ship them to locations in the Pacific Palisades or Altadena to go toward the construction of new, fire-resistant homes.

When the fires erupted Jan. 7, the flames burned more than 43,000 acres and destroyed more than 16,000 structures, with the value of homes impacted far exceeding $51 billion.

Sasha Jokic, CEO and founder of Cosmic Buildings, grew up in war-torn Yugoslavia. He says the experience inspired the company’s conception and its mission to “revolutionize the housing industry.”

“I lost my home in a war. Seeing my parents putting their lives together and building a house brick by brick really attracted me,” Jokic said during the event’s opening remarks. “I fell in love with architecture and construction as a magical process that makes something meaningful as a home.”

The micro factory at 16855 Livorno Drive cost about $250,000 to set up. It employs a robotic arm to build interior frames, roofs and flooring panels for single-family homes, taking in account wire and plumbing fixtures. One wall panel takes about 20 minutes to build, depending on its size.

While the home’s skeleton is built, a construction crew manually lays the foundation and puts together pre-designed components on-site — cabinets, kitchen and bathroom fixtures.

This construction system, where the construction crew works parallel with the robot, is around 10 times faster and 30% cheaper than traditional construction, Jokic said.

The homes cost between $550 to $750 per square foot, depending on the design.

The median sale price per square foot in the Pacific Palisades is $1,270, up 20.2% since last year, according to a recent Redfin report. And in Altadena, the median price is $749 per square foot.

A model home on 16855 Livorno Dr. cost approximately $550 to $770 per square foot. (Photo by Victoria Le, SCNG)

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A model home on 16855 Livorno Dr. cost approximately $550 to $770 per square foot. (Photo by Victoria Le, SCNG)

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Aaron George and his family, the owners of the property on 16855 Livorno Drive, hadn’t finished moving into their newly-purchased home when the flames reached their lot.

Currently renting in Redondo beach, George, 38, is in the process of building a new home with Cosmic. He just finished selecting his floor plan, a “modern” design, and is now waiting on a permit from the city.

“We’ve done a couple home renovations and construction projects in the past. There’s decision fatigue constantly. But this process is less intimidating because there’s a more limited number of options when it comes to materials, color schemes and layouts,” George said.

Homeowners have the option to select a pre-designed floor plan, or to create their own via an AI-driven design process.

Working with AI, Jokic said, ensures designs are compliant with local building codes and enables the entire homebuilding process — customizing or selecting the floor plan, permitting, construction, delivery and interior design — to take less than a year to complete.

The company aims to build 100 homes by 2027 and will donate one home for every 10 constructed, as announced during the launch event.

A robotic approach to homebuilding in the Palisades fire zone Orange County Register

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