Wang Xingxing, CEO of Chinese robotics manufacturer Unitree Robotics, claims that humanoid robots still lack the artificial intelligence technology to become mainstream and make a breakthrough to truly mass use in all walks of life.
Wang Xingxing, CEO of Chinese robotics manufacturer Unitree Robotics, claims that humanoid robots still lack the artificial intelligence technology to become mainstream and make a breakthrough to truly mass use in all walks of life.
It is AI technology for humanoid robots that remains a key challenge for this sector, according to Wang Xinsing, Bloomberg reports .
«It seems like we’re one to three years away from this technology. The industry knows where we need to go, and it’s just that no one has done it yet,» said Unitree Robotics CEO at the World Robotics Conference in Beijing on Saturday.
In his opinion, the current situation in robotics can be compared to the moment of ChatGPT’s breakthrough in 2022, when OpenAI’s chatbot instantly became a hit and made AI a common term.
Chinese companies are currently testing humanoid robots in factories for tasks such as material sorting and quality inspection. For example, Unitree has released its R1 robot for $5,900, although it has not yet entered mass production.
In 2025, Chinese humanoid robots ran a half marathon, competed in a kickboxing tournament, and played soccer. But these events were not technological triumphs for them—most of the half-marathon participants stumbled, fell behind, or failed to complete the distance. Nevertheless, they underscored the country’s ambition to catch up and surpass the United States in this field.
