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China’s robotics sector will need 5 years to reach its ‘EV moment’, MetaX investor says

UBtech’s Walker S1 industrial humanoid robot was launched in June last year. Photo: Xinhua

China’s robotics industry may need at least five years before humanoid models reach a similar level of acceptance to electric vehicles, according to private equity firm Hermitage Capital, the latest voice warning of a potential bubble in the sector.
The firm, which manages US$1.5 billion in assets, was an early investor in Chinese graphics processing unit designer MetaX Integrated Circuits, whose shares skyrocketed 700 per cent on their debut in Shanghai last month.

In an interview with the Post, Hermitage founder and CEO Sean Xiang Yuqiu said the embodied intelligence sector – the new darling of investors in China – would prosper, but its development would “not be too fast given the current technology bottlenecks”.

Xiang said there were numerous technical challenges in the current level of humanoid robots, including the “brain’s” ability to coordinate precise motion control, as well as limitations in the dexterity of components like robotic hands.

“A humanoid robot that would be accepted by mass consumers should at least be able to complete certain tasks autonomously,” said Henry Zhang Menghan, president and managing partner of Hermitage Capital. “But unfortunately, few of the existing makers can achieve this currently.”

UBtech’s Walker S1 industrial humanoid robot was launched in June last year. Photo: Xinhua
UBtech’s Walker S1 industrial humanoid robot was launched in June last year. Photo: Xinhua

Xiang said it might take five years for the robotics sector to reach its equivalent “EV moment”, when Chinese carmakers shook global markets with their low-cost, mass-produced vehicles.

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