-
TOPIC

Robotics

Related Topics:
Robotics
As China bets on tech and innovation to drive its growth, it has placed its chips on several industrial sectors that are expected to play increasingly important roles in development and trade, which will bring fresh opportunities and challenges for stakeholders. SCMP’s China Future Tech is your go-to destination for the latest news, insights, and opinions on these select industries. Explore in-depth coverage of EVs, AI, semiconductors, aerospace, robotics and biomedicine sectors. Follow us to stay ahead in China's evolving competitive landscape.
Chinese fintech giant Ant Group has open-sourced its first ever artificial intelligence models designed to make robots intelligent enough to be highly productive in the real world. Photo: Handout
Artificial intelligence

Ant Group’s open-source push aims to move robots from lab demos to real-world work

Flashy robots can dance and backflip on cue, but Ant Group is betting open-source AI can take them beyond scripted moves.

Electric & new energy vehicles

How Tesla’s AI shift is prompting Chinese rivals to expand tech offerings

videocam
Artificial intelligence

China’s humanoid robot sales to double this year as costs fall: Morgan Stanley

videocam
Electric & new energy vehicles

Tesla reports first ever annual revenue decline as China’s EV giants zoom ahead

Tesla’s vehicle production fell 7 per cent year on year in 2025, as Elon Musk signals company will pivot to humanoid robots.

videocam
8
Tesla CEO Elon Musk speaks during a panel discussion at the World Economic Forum (WEF), in Davos, Switzerland. Tesla has reported that its annual revenues declined for the first time in the company’s history in 2025. Photo: EPA
China technology

Opinion | How Hangzhou’s tech ecosystem nurtures dragons and rockets

It’s not one factor but a ‘rainforest’ of policy, capital, talent, universities and research institutions operating within clear boundaries.

videocam
US-China tech war

My Take | Steadfast state support is key to China winning tech race with US

America is shooting itself in the foot by defunding basic research and manpower under the Trump White House.

videocam
5
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Alibaba

Chinese tech giants Tencent and Baidu join fight for Spring Festival spotlight

The two companies launch digital red packet campaigns following tie-up moves by ByteDance and Alibaba with CCTV’s Spring Festival Gala.

The Spring Festival Gala has become one of the most important promotional platforms for tech giants. Photo: Handout
China technology

China’s Eyou opens world’s first automated line for humanoid robot joints

Manufacturer adds line in anticipation of surge in global demand for humanoid robots, with one estimate projecting 100,000 shipments by 2027.

Artificial intelligence

Beijing outlines tech push with focus on AI, 6G, humanoid robots

Tech ministry’s plan targets breakthroughs in AI models, agents and chips, as well as AI’s spread into diverse sectors.

Unitree Robotics

China’s Unitree ships over 5,500 humanoid robots in 2025, surpassing US peers

The Hangzhou-based firm’s output far outstripped the roughly 150 units each shipped by Tesla, Figure AI and Agility Robotics last year.

videocam
5
A G1 humanoid robot model from Unitree waves at visitors during the 21st China International Equipment & Manufacturing Industry Expo in Tianjin on March 6, 2025. Photo: Xinhua
Mainland China

UBTech partners with Airbus to bring humanoid robots to aviation manufacturing

The deal follows a similar one with US semiconductor maker Texas Instruments, underscoring the Chinese firm’s accelerated overseas push.

In this screengrab from video footage released by UBTech, hundreds of Walker S2 humanoid robots stand in precise formation inside a warehouse. Photo: Baidu
China stock market

China’s advances in AI fuel tech stock boom, help it shake off economic malaise

China’s rise recasts the country from a low-cost base to a credible US tech challenger, just as global capital hunts for next growth engine.

Artificial intelligence

Hong Kong bolsters tech hub ambitions as city hosts global AI summit

Hong Kong’s turn to host a summit under WAIC reflects Beijing’s confidence in the city’s strategic development goals.

Mainland China

China dominates global humanoid robot market with over 80% of installations

AgiBot and Unitree help China capture bulk of global deployments in 2025 as market heads for sixfold growth by 2027, report says.

Visitors take pictures of Unitree robots at a fair in Paris. Photo: Reuters
China Future Tech briefing

AI | Humanoid robot guides to hiker exoskeletons: CES 2026 round-up

Chinese companies comprised about one in four exhibitors at the world’s largest electronics expo, and they showcased everything from stair-climbing robot vacuum cleaners to AI-powered pet companions.

Humanoid robot guides to hiker exoskeletons: CES 2026 round-up
China manufacturing

China vows more support for ‘little giant’-like firms amid self-sufficiency push

Beijing also aims to collect more industrial data and push manufacturers to embrace digital solutions.

videocam
China technology

Chinese firms, led by AgiBot, outpace US rivals in 2025 humanoid robot shipments

‘Chinese vendors are setting benchmarks in large-scale production,’ Omdia analyst Lian Jye Su says.

videocam
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Artificial intelligence

Chinese robot conducts complex operation on pig without human intervention

The robot completed 88 per cent of the steps on its first attempt, followed by real-time adjustments and corrections to finish the surgery.

A surgical robot performs an operation in Beijing. Photo: Handout
China economy

Price wars in China

Intense price competition in China, known as “neijuan” or involution, is causing deflationary risks, corporate losses, reduced investments and wage pressure.

Artificial intelligence

Shenzhen eyes bigger role in world robotics arena as firms vow to boost output

Premier Li Qiang urges faster adoption of robotics to benefit industries and households during a meeting with tech companies in Shenzhen.

Video | Chinese humanoid robot shows off combat-style agility

China’s Unitree Robotics advances its next-gen H2 humanoid with balance, strength and precision.

1
01:00
Mainland China

China’s robotics sector will need 5 years to reach its ‘EV moment’, PE firm says

The robotics sector was estimated to have raised over US$8.15 billion in 2025, up more than 170 per cent from the year before.

Sean Xiang, Hermitage Capital’s founder and CEO, photographed at his office in Central, Hong Kong. Photo: Yik Yeung-man
CES

China’s humanoid robot makers, Hong Kong start-ups set to dazzle CES 2026

Nearly a dozen Chinese humanoid robot makers are expected at the trade show, while Hong Kong sends its largest-ever delegation.

videocam
Artificial intelligence

China takes confident strides to develop more AI innovation in 2026

‘China’s tech innovation is poised for policy-driven growth in 2026, with AI placed at the centre of the country’s economic agenda,’ NYU’s Winston Ma says.

China technology

Chinese robot vacuum maker Dreame gives staff gifts of gold, trip to Antarctica

Dreame’s surprise largesse reflects its robust business growth in 2025, as it remains one of the world’s top robot vacuum cleaner brands.

A Dreame 10s Ultra robot vacuum cleaner. Photo: Dreame
3D printing

How a Chinese start-up is scaling 3D printing from sneakers to robots

Materials expert Wang Wenbin founded PollyPolymer in 2017 and developed a mature 3D-printing technology for footwear two years later.

3D-printed footwear accounts for 60 per cent of PollyPolymer’s total revenue. Photo: Handout
Unitree Robotics

Editorial | Keep humans in mind as China races ahead in robotics

The focus must be on finding a future where human creativity and robotic efficiency can work together rather than compete.

DJI

Untapped global demand to drive next phase of robotic vacuum growth: Dreame

Europe is Dreame’s largest market for robotic vacuum cleaners, with more than half of its revenue there generated by premium products.

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Help preserve 120 years of quality journalism.
SUPPORT NOW
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement