Chinese robotics companies showcased humanoid robots sorting parcels, packing smartphones, and assisting with household chores at a conference in Beijing on Wednesday, signaling a shift from entertainment-focused displays to broader commercial applications.
Over 300 mostly domestic companies participated in the event, known as the World Robot Conference, which runs through Sunday. Exhibitors presented more than 2,000 displays and launched over 150 new products, according to organizers.
The event coincides with growing investor interest in humanoid robots, which represent a potential new growth avenue for China’s industrial sector and an area of technological rivalry with the United States.
Shares of Unitree Robotics, China’s leading humanoid robot manufacturer, surged nearly six times during their debut on the Shanghai Stock Exchange after their IPO was oversubscribed by retail investors more than 8,000 times.
Following Unitree’s stock debut, startups like Lumos Robotics and the robotics division of China’s top auto exporter, Chery Automobile, revealed they are also exploring public listings.
During the conference, Nvidia executive Madison Huang—daughter of CEO Jensen Huang—made an unannounced visit. She observed robots performing flying kicks and dancing before stopping at a robot booth to inquire about its sensors.
Huang, responsible for marketing Nvidia’s Omniverse and robotics platforms, was noted by onlookers much like her father, who has previously visited Beijing. These platforms are used to simulate and test AI systems that can perceive and interact with the physical world.
Despite ongoing geopolitical tensions and U.S. restrictions on the export of advanced AI chips to China, Huang’s visit highlighted the crucial role foreign suppliers play in China’s efforts to develop industrial and domestic robots.
RealSense, a US-based provider of vision systems for robotics and one of the few foreign exhibitors at the conference, mentioned it is forming sales partnerships across China as the sector advances.
“We see China as a very strategic market for us,” said Mike Nielsen, the company’s chief marketing officer. “It’s becoming the hub of humanoid robot technology.”
At the opening ceremony, Xin Guobin, Vice Minister of Industry and Information Technology, stated that robotics have become a vital force in China’s economic and social development, according to local media reports.
Chinese robots are increasingly being tested in logistics, manufacturing, and service industries.
“Our most common applications are in logistics,” noted Zhang Dapeng, assistant vice president of the industrial humanoid robot company Leju, as they demonstrated robots moving and sorting crates and small objects. He added that European factories and Chinese automakers are using Leju robots to handle parts and load containers.
At Robotera’s booth, a humanoid torso mounted on a mobile base was sorting parcels. An official explained that the robot has been deployed at China Post logistics centers since last year, powered by Robotera’s AI software.
A sales representative reported that Robotera has supplied over 100 parcel-sorting robots across 15 warehouses nationwide.
In another demonstration, DexForce showed humanoid robots packing smartphones into boxes on an assembly line. The company’s official, Nicole Yang, said the robots have been operational since early this year at a Lens Technology factory, a supplier to Apple and Huawei.
Yang highlighted that the robots operate with millimeter-level precision and can identify and correct errors, such as misaligned phones.
“While humans are still the most dexterous,” Yang said, “many factory workers are reluctant to perform repetitive, mundane tasks.”
Lumos Robotics is currently using robots to streamline the assembly of key components and plans to expand automation to final product assembly, according to CEO Yu Chao.
X Square Robot, known for household assistance robots, aims to move beyond short-term home trials. Its longest deployment lasted a month, and the company is testing robots in hundreds of homes this year with a view to gradual commercialization next year, said co-founder Yang Qian.
Nielsen from RealSense emphasized that the companies most likely to succeed will be those able to rapidly integrate robots into active manufacturing environments, especially given China’s quick development cycles.
“In robotics, product cycles are typically six to eight months, not three to four years,” he explained.