China Bets on Humanoid Robots as U.S. Chip Restrictions Bite

The World AI Conference in Shanghai showcased China’s advancements in artificial intelligence, particularly in the development of humanoid robots, as the country grapples with ongoing chip shortages due to U.S. export controls.

Emphasis on humanoid robots over advanced chips: Huawei Cloud CEO Zhang Ping’an argued that China does not need the most advanced chips to lead in AI development, suggesting that the country should focus on other areas of innovation:

• Zhang stated that believing advanced AI chips are the only path to AI leadership is equivalent to embracing defeat, urging the industry to abandon this viewpoint.
• The conference featured 18 mostly Chinese-made humanoid robots from companies such as Fourier, Tlibot, Dataa Robotics, Robotera, Leju Robot, Shanghai Kepler Robot, and Ti5 Robot.

Potential advantages of humanoid robots over large language models: A Chinese media article highlighted the perspective of a Moore Threads executive, who argued that humanoid robots may have advantages over large language models (LLMs):

• Since much information is nonverbal, fully enabled humanoid robots equipped with synthetic eyes, ears, mouths, and limbs could potentially overcome the limitations of LLMs.
• Creating robot brains that do not rely on LLMs may result in “an unexpectedly intelligent entity,” according to the executive.

Regulatory framework for humanoid robots: A group representing industrial, legal, and technical committees released “Guidelines for the Governance of Humanoid Robots” at the conference:

• The guidelines aim to ensure that robots do no harm and provide commercial value in line with “human moral values.”
• However, the conference also featured companies with operations outside Shanghai’s regulatory jurisdiction, such as Tesla, which showcased its second-generation Optimus robot.

China’s focus on domestic companies and manufacturing applications: Despite the apparent special treatment given to Tesla in China, the country’s ultimate aim is to promote homegrown industry and achieve technological self-reliance:

• In 2023, the Ministry of Industry and Informatization Technology released guiding opinions on developing humanoid robots, emphasizing manufacturing applications.
• Premier Li Qiang recently presided over a State Council meeting focused on accelerating the digital transformation of China’s manufacturing sector, prioritizing specialized and innovative small and medium-sized enterprises.

Broader implications: China’s leaders are heavily invested in applying advanced technologies to the country’s industrial base, seeing manufacturing as the area with the most immediate commercial viability:

• AI-powered robotic factory workers are seen as a potential solution that may not require the same level of ideological supervision as AI-generated content.
• However, if the “intelligence” of these robots reaches the levels companies are hoping for, they may eventually require similar regulation and censorship as other AI applications.