Humanoid robots from Songyan Power Robotics made an appearance at this year's Spring Festival Gala. The frequent presence of humanoid robots during the CCTV Spring Festival Gala has once again sparked widespread public discussion on embodied artificial intelligence. At a press conference held by the Beijing municipal government concerning the construction of a benchmark city for the global digital economy by 2026, Li Hui, a member of the Party leadership group and deputy director of the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Economy and Information Technology, stated that the impressive showcases by Beijing-based companies Galaxy General and Songyan Power at the Gala were not just highlights for the enterprises, but also represented interim achievements in Beijing's commitment to developing the embodied AI industry with a "human-centric" philosophy.
He indicated that Beijing's approach to advancing the embodied AI industry first focuses on solving the issue of "practical utility." The city supports various innovators in making full-stack advancements in both hardware and AI model technologies. On one hand, efforts are directed towards developing high-precision dexterous hands, high-torque joints, long-endurance batteries, and high-accuracy sensors to provide the industry with robust, reliable, and perceptive robotic platforms. On the other hand, the city is systematically establishing training grounds for embodied AI robots, opening up real-world scenarios and innovating in data collection technologies to supply the industry with high-quality, massive datasets.
Beijing also supports exploring multiple pathways for developing general-purpose AI models for embodiment, aiming to create an intelligent "brain" capable of logical reasoning and perceptual decision-making, alongside an agile "cerebellum" that can autonomously perform various tasks. Furthermore, by organizing events like a humanoid robot half-marathon and a World Humanoid Robot Games, the city provides a platform to test innovative outcomes and accelerate technological iteration.
The second priority is addressing the need for "empathy." Beijing emphasizes the interaction between embodied AI and humans, supporting the development of biomimetic technologies that feature rich expressions, realistic facial features, and natural interactivity. The goal is to narrow the distance between robots and people, ensuring that embodied AI is not merely a cold tool but also offers emotional value and technological humanism. Adhering to an open-source and open development path, Beijing is promoting the construction of public industrial infrastructure such as robot secondary development communities and robot 4S stores, aiming to build a vibrant and warm industrial ecosystem.
Finally, the city is exploring the challenge of "ensuring safety." Drawing on its governance experience from sectors like drones and intelligent connected vehicles, Beijing has preliminarily established testing and certification platforms. It is actively piloting a "one-robot, one-code" management system for humanoid robots and is taking the lead in exploring technical measures and operational mechanisms for the safety governance of embodied AI robots throughout their entire lifecycle.