Humanoid robots become a popular attraction at festival near Shanghai
🎧 Listen to this story
A research and development center near Shanghai brought together more than 100 companies for a robot “Carnival” that drew families during a holiday. Visitors watched quadruped robots climb stairs, remotely controlled machines duel with water jets, and humanoids perform martial arts and acrobatics; there were also models designed for tasks such as carrying heavy loads, inspecting pipes and making coffee. Children could buy dog-shaped mini robots and interact directly with the machines.
According to MIT Technology Review Brasil, China made nearly 90% of the more than 13,000 humanoid robots delivered worldwide last year. Embodied AI is part of the country’s latest five-year plan, while Chinese companies continue promoting the machines in shopping malls, tourist attractions and sporting events. Yang Duan, a product manager at DexForce, said humanoids could reduce physical work and repetitive tasks, although high prices, short battery life and safety challenges still limit the technology.
Why it matters · editorial interpretation
The festival combines public demonstrations with use cases involving physical tasks, while Yang Duan of DexForce says price, battery life and safety still limit humanoids. The cited scale of Chinese production suggests competition is also about adoption and visibility, not only technical performance.