A young visitor stares at a humanoid skin-textured robot at the 2024 World Internet Conference & Light of Internet Expo in Wuzhen, Zhejiang province on November 19. (TIAN JIANMING/FOR CHINA DAILY)
US celebrity Kim Kardashian may have garnered attention by taking a humanoid robot shopping, but China is not only weaving robots into everyday life, but also cutting costs and pushing the limits of the robot industry. By promoting applications, we are quietly revolutionizing the game.
In other words, humanoid robots are causing a sensation in China.
From UBTech’s nimble Walker
But that’s just the beginning.
More than 10 Chinese auto giants, including BYD, Chery and Xpeng, are vying to enter this futuristic field.
BYD, China’s leader in new energy vehicles, is building a state-of-the-art Embodied Intelligence Laboratory, with a focus on laying the foundation for the next big leap in humanoid robotics, officials said. He told China Daily.
The Central Economic Work Conference, which set the tone for December, also brought to the forefront the AI Plus initiative, which aims to foster future industries, including humanoid robots, while reinforcing the country’s scientific and technological advantages. .
Xu Xiaolan, a former vice minister of industry and information technology and a member of the Standing Committee of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, said humanoid robots are expected to become a “disruptive product” next to computers, smartphones and new energy vehicles.
“New technologies, products, and formats, such as humanoid robots and artificial general intelligence, are currently flourishing in China, making it the pinnacle of global innovation, setting new trajectories for future industries, and new economic growth. “It’s becoming a driving force,” she said.
Market consultancy firm Coherent Market Insights estimates that sales of China’s rapidly growing humanoid robot market will reach $2.9 billion in 2024, and will surge to about $46.31 billion by 2031, with an annual average It is predicted to achieve an astonishing growth rate of 48.6%.
“If we compare the humanoid robot industry to a marathon, both China and Western countries are within the first 1,000 meters from the starting line,” said Jiao Jichao, vice president and research director of UBTech Robotics.
Walker S, a humanoid robot developed by Chinese artificial intelligence and humanoid robot company UBTech, is China’s first robot to perform full-process handling tasks in a car factory.
The company also signed a cooperation agreement with Audi FAW and Beijing Bodily Intelligent Robotics Innovation Center earlier this year to jointly develop intelligent solutions for humanoid robots.
The partnership will bring humanoid robots to automotive production lines for intelligent material handling, quality inspection and material processing tasks. This is expected to facilitate the large-scale introduction of humanoid robots in automobile factories.
Zhao told China Daily that he is confident that the company’s humanoid robots will reach widespread factory applications within three years. “By the end of this year (2024), the company aims to deliver humanoid robots in small quantities to industries that perform labor and sorting tasks, especially car factories.”
