Future of Made-in-China: UBTech Robotics deploys first humanoid ‘team’ in car factory

A Shenzhen-based humanoid robot maker said it has deployed “dozens of robots” in an electric vehicle (EV) factory where they work together on complicated tasks, offering a peek into the future of Made-in-China tech as artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics technologies are applied to empower manufacturing.

Hong Kong-listed UBTech Robotics said on Monday that it has completed a test to deploy dozens of its Walker S1 robots in the Zeekr EV factory in the Chinese port city of Ningbo for “multitask” and “multi site” operations.

According to photos and videos provided by UBTech, the human-shaped robots work as a team to complete tasks such as lifting heavy boxes and handling soft materials.

The successful deployment showcases China’s progress in upgrading its massive manufacturing capability by letting smart robots run factories through autonomous interaction and coordination.

US billionaire Elon Musk said in late January that he aimed to deploy 10,000 Optimus humanoid robots in Tesla factories this year. It is unclear how many humanoid robots Tesla has deployed so far. In a post on X in January, Tesla revealed that it has had two Optimus robots working autonomously on its factory floor since June 2024.

UBTech did not disclose how many S1 robots it has deployed to the Zeeker factory, but a “group photo” of the robots showed that the number was around 20. Zeekr is an EV brand owned by Chinese car conglomerate Geely Auto, one of China’s major car makers.