May 10, 2025, Xinhua Daily – Following the global debut of a humanoid robot half marathon in Beijing, an unprecedented humanoid robot sports meet has once again focused the world’s attention on China. From April 24 to 26, 2025, the inaugural Embodied Intelligent Robot Sports Meet took place in Wuxi, featuring over 100 research teams, renowned enterprises, and university representatives who showcased more than 150 humanoid robots in competitive events. Highlights included humanoid robot athletes taking oaths, 2V2 humanoid robot football matches, combat robots engaging in close-quarters battles, and AI chess-playing robots competing against human teams. This grand “martial arts assembly” for robots has not only generated massive global interest but also opened new frontiers for industrial innovation in Wuxi, a city historically celebrated for its commercial prowess. At the starting line of this emerging humanoid robot industry track, Wuxi has set an ambitious goal: to cluster 200 enterprises in the embodied intelligent humanoid robot sector, create no fewer than 300 key industry application scenarios, and establish a 30 billion yuan industrial-scale base for embodied intelligent humanoid robots within three years.
1. Faster: Gathering Intelligence to Create a Strong Magnetic Field for Technological Innovation
The inaugural Embodied Intelligent Robot Sports Meet served as a platform for numerous “Made in Wuxi” humanoid robots to demonstrate their capabilities. For instance, “Iron Dun,” China’s first humanoid shooting robot, displayed pinpoint accuracy by outperforming multiple human challengers in basketball. Another humanoid robot, “Little Crab,” mimicked a calligrapher’s skill by controlling brush strokes with flexible mechanical arms. Additionally, the world’s first “muscle exoskeleton robot” assisted an individual with mobility issues, restoring their ability to walk independently. These exhibitions underscored Wuxi’s innovative strengths and technological achievements in the humanoid robot field. Statistical data reveals that from 2015 to 2024, Wuxi filed 572 patent applications related to humanoid robot technologies, with an invention patent grant rate of 57%, ranking first in Jiangsu Province. The city has made breakthroughs in core components such as servo systems, joint modules, sensors, and millimeter-wave radar, resulting in a portfolio of specialized products.
In the domain of servo motors, a critical element for humanoid robots, the champion of the robot half marathon—”Tiangong”—relied on servo joints supplied by Wuxi-based Yiyou Technology. Jiangsu Yiyou Robot Technology Co., Ltd. founder Sun Zeju emphasized, “We focus on perfecting one thing: optimizing the performance of integrated joints to the extreme while minimizing costs, thereby accelerating the widespread adoption of intelligent humanoid robots.” The company’s ProServo series of miniature servo joints feature core technologies that have reached internationally leading levels. Collaborative efforts are intensifying to tackle key technological challenges. Last year, the Xiganghu Robot Dexterous Intelligence Research Institute was established in Wuxi, uniting resources from Xigang, Shanghai, and other regions to develop the “cerebellum” for controlling dexterous movements in humanoid robots. The institute now boasts a team exceeding 100 members and has applied for over 50 invention patents. Leveraging support from institutions like the Huazhong University of Science and Technology Wuxi Research Institute and the Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics Wuxi Research Institute, Huishan District has incubated a batch of high-quality enterprises specializing in humanoid robots. During the sports meet, districts including Huishan and Xishan forged strategic partnerships with the National-Local Joint Humanoid Robot Innovation Center to co-build application demonstration bases and training grounds for embodied intelligent humanoid robots.
2. Higher: Chain Development Cultivating New Engine for Industrial Entities
The embodied intelligent humanoid robot industry shares high similarities with the automotive sector, and Wuxi—home to an automotive cluster exceeding 200 billion yuan—possesses a solid foundation for transitioning into this new domain. An increasing number of Wuxi enterprises are seizing opportunities to capture a share of this trillion-yuan blue ocean market. Tianqi Automation Engineering Co., Ltd., with over 40 years of experience in manufacturing production line integration, has positioned humanoid robots as a strategic focus for its future. Guo Dahong, Deputy General Manager of the Humanoid Robot Division at Tianqi, stated, “The company established a dedicated humanoid robot division and an embodied intelligent robot data collection and application training base. Our joint venture with Ubtech Robotics, Wuxi Youqi Robot Technology Co., Ltd., has been designated as a chain leader enterprise in Wuxi’s humanoid robot industry cluster.” Tianqi continues to drive the large-scale deployment of humanoid robots in intelligent manufacturing, having already provided application solutions for more than 20 clients.
As leading enterprises accelerate their advancements, numerous “Wuxi-brand” products are entering the embodied intelligent humanoid robot market through component supply chains. For example, Wuxi Best, a stalwart in automotive parts, founded subsidiary Yuhua Precision Machinery to develop core linear actuator components like ball screws. Similarly, Wuxi’s automotive giants Huaguang and Wandi Power jointly established Weihan Intelligence, focusing on the R&D and production of harmonic reducers. This has led to the gradual formation of a comprehensive industrial chain for core humanoid robot parts. Key local enterprises have united under the “Humanoid Robot Core Components Industry Alliance” to foster collaborative efforts spanning R&D, manufacturing, and market development. To capitalize on the humanoid robot industry boom, Wuxi adheres to an industrial development model centered on “industrial clusters plus specialized parks,” targeting critical segments like humanoid robot pilot testing, manufacturing, and R&D to create differentiated industrial zones. The Wuxi (Huishan) Humanoid Robot Industrial Park is currently under rapid construction, with its robot manufacturing-focused approach and “investment-construction-operation” integrated model attracting upstream and downstream resources. Phases one and two are scheduled for operation by the end of this year. During the sports meet, six industrial projects—including exoskeleton robots and pipeline maintenance robots—signed agreements to settle in the park.
3. Stronger: Diversified Exploration Building Main Position for Scenario Applications
At the sports meet, humanoid robots actively “moved,” generating behavioral data to continuously refine algorithmic models. Beyond the arena, these humanoid robots are being successfully “utilized” to empower hundreds of industries through diverse applications. In October 2024, Wuxi Youqi Robot Technology Co., Ltd. launched a fully autonomous logistics solution at BYD’s Changsha Industrial Park, marking the first instance of humanoid robots collaborating with unmanned vehicles. In the first half of 2025, Ubtech Robotics Co., Ltd., operating from the Wuxi Industrial Embodied Robot Industrial Park, will supply 20 industrial humanoid robots, Walker S1, to Dongfeng Liuzhou Automobile for automotive manufacturing—representing the world’s first batch deployment of humanoid robots in such a setting. Wuxi officially designated humanoid robots as one of its key future industries in 2024. As innovative applications accelerate breakthroughs, humanoid robots are expanding from “high-difficulty industrial scenarios” to “high-frequency civil scenarios.”
At the Changning Community Service Center, China’s first intelligent elderly care humanoid robot, “Big Head Ali,” engages in conversations with seniors. Ran Chenglong, General Manager of Jiangsu Aiyu Wencheng Elderly Care Robot Co., Ltd., noted, “The convergence of the silver economy and AI applications offers boundless prospects.” Since its debut at the Shanghai Senior Care Expo last year, “Big Head Ali” has attracted numerous domestic and international orders, embarking on a global journey. In Wuxi, a wave of humanoid robot scenario exploration is sweeping across sectors, with embodied intelligent humanoid robots taking roles as workshop technicians, security patrol officers, educational service providers, baristas, and even star-chasing “fans.” These innovations are introducing transformative changes to production and daily life, injecting new momentum into economic and social development. During the inaugural Embodied Intelligent Robot Sports Meet, experts such as Academician Ding Han of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Foreign Academician Zhang Jianwei of the Chinese Academy of Engineering highlighted in keynote reports that humanoid robots boast rich application scenarios and will have vast exploration space and significant developmental prospects across multiple fields in the future.
The sports meet also witnessed the signing of seven procurement intent projects, including humanoid robot applications in battery factories and humanoid robot acquisitions for primary and secondary education. Concurrently, Wuxi released a demand list for nearly 300 humanoid robots, signaling further expansion of application scenarios from industrial manufacturing to social and civil domains like security, education, and elderly care. This multifaceted approach solidifies Wuxi’s position as a testing ground for the next generation of humanoid robot technologies.