Beyond dancing and somersaults, humanoid robots in China aim higher

The Star

4 days ago

SHENZHEN: China is riding a wave of enthusiasm for humanoid robots that shows no sign of abating despite questions about the commercial viability of the pricey droids – fun to look at as they may be.
The sector continues to draw in companies and investors keen to hitch their wagons to the emerging tech which has fast become emblematic of China's quest for global leadership in science and innovation.
On May 28, smartphone maker Honor became the latest tech firm to enter the crowded humanoid robot space, joining the likes of electronics giant Xiaomi and electric vehicle maker Xpeng in what some say could become a multi-trillion dollar industry.
Capital, too, has poured into the sector. Humanoid-related investments so far in 2025 have surpassed funding received for the whole of 2024.
'Humanoid robots are the development trend of the robotics industry,' said Deng Shaorong, regional director at Guangzhou Inbot Technology, a maker of commercial service robots which is expanding into humanoids.
'But at this stage, one of the biggest problems that they face is in real-world applications,' he said. 'Ultimately, investors are interested not just in the next hot concept, but in whether the robots can really be put to use, reducing costs and increasing efficiency.'
Robotics driven by artificial intelligence (AI), also called 'embodied AI', is a national priority for China. It was written into the government's annual work plan for the first time in 2025, and the authorities are sparing little expense to make sure the sector gets the funds it needs.
Officials announced in March a trillion yuan (S$179 billion) venture capital fund aimed at mobilising support for robotics and other high-tech industries. Local governments, including in tech powerhouses Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen, have also set up investment funds for robotics and AI to the tune of billions of yuan.
At a study session involving China's top leaders in late April, President Xi Jinping spoke of providing support in financing, tax incentives and government procurement to strengthen the development of AI in China.
And it is not just the state: private companies, too, are investing in start-ups developing humanoid robots. They include carmakers such as BYD and internet giants JD.com, Ant, and Tencent.
In 2025 to date, humanoid-related investments were valued at more than 6.1 billion yuan, according to figures from IT Juzi, a venture capital data service provider, that were cited by local news outlet Economic Information Daily in late May.
It exceeds the 5.89 billion yuan that the industry received for the whole of 2024.
Humanoid robots captured the public's imagination in China in January, when they performed a folk dance on the country's most-watched television show on Chinese New Year's Eve.
Videos of humanoids doing somersaults and riding a bicycle have circulated widely on social media. Viewers tuned in to a livestream of robots punching each other in a first-ever kick-boxing tournament in May. Earlier, the humanoids trundled through a half-marathon in Beijing, but less than a third of them managed to finish the race.
Too much hype?
Still, not everyone is impressed with their stunts. Some investors have raised concerns that there might be too much hype surrounding the industry, and wondered if the robots made commercial sense.
'I often joke that now, any humanoid robot can do somersaults. But where is the commercialisation?', asked prominent venture capitalist Allen Zhu, managing director of GSR Ventures, in an interview with local media outlet China Venture in late March.
Zhu said he had questioned some chief executives on who their potential clients would be, but had come away sceptical about who was going to spend hundreds of thousands of yuan to buy a robot to do these jobs.
He revealed then that his company was exiting its humanoid robot investments.
An investment manager at a state-backed venture capital fund in Shenzhen said: 'There is definitely a bubble in terms of (humanoid robot) companies' valuations.' Many firms had much higher valuations than their current profit-making capacities, she explained.
Declining to be named as she was not authorised to speak to the media, the manager told The Straits Times that while her company was looking to more than double its investments in 2025 from a year ago, it was 'not in a hurry' to sink more funds into humanoids, preferring 'mainly to understand the industry' for now.
Instead, it was eyeing sectors such as advanced manufacturing and semiconductors, she added.
Early days yet
Robotics start-ups ST spoke with were, however, unruffled by the naysayers, and urged patience at this early stage in the humanoids' development.
'They are like Primary 1 or Primary 2 students,' Nie Xiangru, co-founder of Paxini Tech, said about the robots. 'Expecting them to go make money right now, that doesn't really seem realistic.'
His company, founded in 2021, recently secured an investment of more than 100 million yuan from electric vehicle maker BYD.
It makes a tall, height-adjustable black humanoid known as Tora-One, which has wheels for legs and dextrous hands which the company says enable it to perform complex tasks, like screwing in light bulbs.
Nie says that, for now, the industry has 'not yet reached the stage' of calculating how long it would take for buyers to break even on their humanoid purchases. Instead, the focus is on ascertaining whether the robots can actually do what customers need.
Robots like Paxini's are currently being trialled and have been put to work on factory floors and in other operating environments. With this, customers get to explore how they can use humanoids in their workflows, while robot-makers can train their droids in real-world operating environments.
A small batch of Tora-Ones has been deployed at some metro stations in Shenzhen, Mr Nie says, with more partnership opportunities being explored. The robot has been used as a security guard of sorts, pointing commuters to put their bags through an x-ray scanner before they can head to the turnstiles.
Meanwhile, diminutive white robots named Quantum One have popped up in a handful of hotels and old folks' homes, where they learn to scrub toilet bowls, fold clothes, and wipe tables.
They are made by X Square Robot, a Shenzhen-based start-up, whose eventual aim is to train up a robot that can enter households and help out autonomously with complex tasks, says chief operating officer Yang Qian.
In May, industry leader UBTech, whose humanoids are being trained in factories ranging from EV brand Zeekr's to iPhone maker Foxconn's, inked a partnership with Huawei to develop smart factories and promote the adoption of robots in factories and homes.
'Ultimately, humanoid robots are not just about dancing,' said Nie. - The Straits Times/ANN