For less than the price of a used 2016 Hyundai Sonata, you could have a brand spanking new humanoid robot.
What happened: Last week, Chinese startup Unitree Robotics unveiled its newest humanoid robot, selling at a starting price of US$5,900. If it works as advertised — a fully customizable droid able to do various tasks, including boxing — it would be a landmark in robot affordability.
- For comparison, Tesla is planning to sell its Optimus humanoid for $30,000, and Boston Dynamics’ famous (and famously scary) robot dogs cost $74,500 a pop.
Big picture: Humanoids are still an emerging business, but they’re set to be a big deal if the likes of Amazon and Nvidia are to be believed. A Morgan Stanley report from this year predicted that humanoid adoption will take off in the late 2030s and become a $5 trillion industry by 2050.
Why it matters: A similar thing is happening with robotics in China as with EVs. Companies have been able to produce cheaper products without seriously compromising quality, and are now slowly taking the lead in a field the U.S. was once far ahead in.
- Unitree wasn’t alone in debuting an impressive bot last week, with several other Chinese companies showing off their humanoid tech at an annual AI conference in Shanghai.
Bottom line: For years, China has grown through manufacturing dominance. Now, it’s becoming a leading innovator, too, a trend that promises to further disrupt the global order of trade, business, and research.—QH