Putting 'souls' into machines

Humanoid robots are making their presence felt across the corporate world, helping to raise national productivity and reshape industries. As Chai Hua reports, China is at the forefront in the revolutionary tech race, with more than a third of the companies in the sector being Chinese.

Editor's note: As artificial intelligence becomes increasingly vital in international competition, embodied AI could be the next big thing. In a series of articles, entitled Hands-on AI, China Daily looks into the technology's applications in different scenarios, with the first focusing on humanoids in factories.

At an automobile plant in Shenzhen, a humanoid robot picks up a box of assembled electronic components and places it onto a self-drive trolley. Another robot meticulously inspects the quality of an electric automobile's headlights as its "colleague" inside another vehicle tests the air-conditioning controls using voice commands.

It's no longer a scene from a science fiction blockbuster. It's the reality at electric vehicle factories across the Chinese mainland, with humanoids being trained to do multiple tasks in different industrial scenarios.

The robots have "eyes" — panoramic cameras with 3D stereoscopic vision — and hands with five-fingered dexterity and tactile sensors. They also feature actuators-linked and mini motor-empowered "muscles" and "joints", all of which help them to accomplish labor-intensive jobs.

More importantly, these sci-fi-turned-reality machines are digitally "ensouled" by embodied artificial intelligence technology.

Embodied AI, where the technology is integrated into physical systems, enables intelligent agents to interact with the environment in a physical form. Unlike large language models, embodied AI focuses on understanding and responding to physical environments. Direct interaction with its surroundings marks a significant shift from AI paradigms. This technique has fueled breakthroughs in key applications, with humanoid robots standing out as a prime example.

"Artificial intelligence is becoming a cornerstone of international competition. Embodied AI — where intelligent software meets smart hardware — could be the next big thing. Humanoid robots, regarded as the ultimate platform for embodied intelligence, have the potential to drastically enhance national productivity and reshape industries," says Michael Tam, chief brand officer of Hong Kong-listed UBTech Robotics.