South China Morning Post: Robot Guards at the China-Vietnam Border

According to the South China Morning Post, the Chinese robotics company UBTech Robotics has announced that it will be responsible for deploying humanoid robots along the China-Vietnam border, with a contract value of $37 million.

The relevant departments in Fangchenggang, a coastal city in the southern part of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, plan to use robots to assist the city's border control authorities in guiding and organizing passengers at the border checkpoints, as well as performing some logistics and border monitoring tasks.

The company launched the "Walker S2" model in July last year, claiming it is the first humanoid robot that can replace batteries on its own without human intervention.

The company plans to deliver more than 500 robots by early next year, and has already started shipping since last month. The total order value of the robots has exceeded $150 million.

The report also noted that the company expects its shipment to reach 10,000 units by 2027 and plans to increase production tenfold within the next year.

This move aligns with the Chinese government's increasing reliance on various forms of robots in many government agencies, as well as the widespread application of robots in enterprises.

Widespread Application of Robots

The report confirmed that Chinese authorities have begun using robots at multiple sensitive locations. For example, humanoid robots have appeared at Hangzhou Xiaoshan International Airport, where they answer passengers' questions and provide assistance.

Some posts on social media platforms indicate that Chinese police are using spherical robots equipped with non-lethal weapons and tools.

The Ministry of Industry and Technology of China also released the list of members of the National Humanoid Robot Committee, led by Shu Shaofeng, chief engineer of regulatory agencies, which includes several well-known figures from major Chinese robotics companies, such as Wang Xingxing, founder of Ule Technology, Peng Zhihui, co-founder of Ajibot, Xiong Yujun, Chief Technology Officer of UBTech, and Jiang Li, Chief Scientist at the Shanghai Institute of Science and Technology.

Source: South China Morning Post (Taiwan) + Social Media

Original: toutiao.com/article/1852993415066692/

Statement: This article represents the views of the author himself.