China's AI lab unveils RoboBrain 2.0 model to accelerate humanoid robot development
In a move that will further assert China's bid to scale robotics industry, the Beijing Academy of Artificial Intelligence (BAAI)—a not for profit research laboratory—unveiled last week a series of new open-source artificial intelligence (AI) models, dubbed RoboBrain 2.0, that will function as the 'brain' of robots.
According to BAAI head Wang Zhongyuan, the use of powerful AI models in China's booming robotics market could accelerate the development and adoption of humanoids, as the sector works to overcome key challenges such as limited model capabilities and a lack of high-quality training data.
Wang further explained that BAAI is actively seeking collaboration across the embodied intelligence industry, emphasizing the importance of joint efforts to accelerate progress. He noted that the institute is working with more than 20 leading companies in the sector and is looking to expand its network of partners to drive continued growth.
Unveiled as part of China's broader push to advance intelligent machines, RoboBrain 2.0 was described by Wang as the world's most powerful open-source AI model designed to enhance a wide range of robots, including humanoids. Its debut positions BAAI as a potential key player in the evolving sector, the South China Morning Post reported.
Furthermore, RoboBrain 2.0 introduces major improvements in spatial intelligence and task planning, delivering a 17% boost in speed and a 74% increase in accuracy compared to the previous version launched just three months earlier.
With enhanced spatial intelligence, robots can now perceive distances from surrounding objects more precisely, while advanced task planning enables them to autonomously deconstruct complex activities into manageable steps, significantly improving overall performance.
The RoboBrain model is part of the Wujie series, which also includes RoboOS 2.0—a cloud platform for deploying robotics AI models—and Emu3, a multimodal system capable of interpreting and generating text, images, and video.
BAAI is one of China's early developers of open-source large language models, the technology behind generative AI chatbots. Several former employees have used their experience at BAAI to start their own AI companies, helping to grow the AI startup community in China.
China's push to lead in robotics AI involves multiple players, with BAAI joined by the Beijing Humanoid Robot Innovation Centre, which earlier this year launched Hui Si Kai Wu—a general-purpose embodied AI platform.
The center is also known for developing the Tien Kung humanoid robot, which made headlines after completing a half-marathon in Beijing in April. The Chinese institution aims to have its platform become the "Android of humanoid robots," serving as a standard operating system much like Google's Android does in the smartphone industry.
Moreover, this year's edition of the BAAI Conference attracted over 100 AI researchers from around the world and more than 200 industry experts, including leaders from major Chinese tech companies such as Baidu, Huawei Technologies, and Tencent Holdings.
Additionally, the Chinese academy also announced a strategic partnership with the Hong Kong Investment Corporation to collaborate on talent development, technology advancement, and capital investment aimed at fostering innovation and entrepreneurship in the country's AI sector.
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