China Trials Humanoid Robots to Assist Travellers at Border Checkpoints
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China has begun trialing humanoid robots at one of its
southern border checkpoints, introducing a new layer of automation to traveller
assistance and crowd control. The project involves Shenzhen-based UBTech
Robotics, which recently secured a contract worth $37 million to deploy
its Walker-series humanoids near the Vietnam border. The robots are expected to
arrive this December, signalling China’s next major step toward becoming a
global robotics and AI powerhouse.
Humanoid Assistants Take on Border-Control Duties
As reported by Techxplore, the pilot program will centre on
UBTech’s newest Walker-series humanoids, machines designed for extended
work cycles thanks to their ability to swap their own batteries autonomously.
During the trial phase, these robots will:
- Guide
travellers through border checkpoints
- Manage
queues and crowd flow
- Support
logistics operations
- Potentially
patrol nearby industrial areas
It is still unclear whether the robots will operate with
fully onboard AI systems or be remotely overseen by human operators. However,
the scale of the contract—paired with UBTech’s strong sales this year,
totalling roughly CNY 1.1 billion—highlights China’s commitment to
placing humanoid robots into real-world public roles.
A Glimpse Into China’s Expanding AI and Robotics Ecosystem
Humanoid robots are just one piece of China’s wider push to
embed automation into public services.
Recent examples include:
- Rolling
police robots in Wenzhou equipped with cameras and tear gas
- A pollution-tracking
robot stationed at Zhengzhou East railway station
- Growing
investments to accelerate national robotics adoption
Industry analysts forecast that China’s humanoid robotics
market could reach CNY 82 billion by 2025, potentially accounting for
nearly half of global sales. Still, experts caution that rapid expansion may
lead to a mismatch between production capacity and actual demand as factories
scale up faster than adoption rates.
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