Robot games highlight a gap between humanoid stunts and real work

In short: Humanoid robots are impressive to watch, but most practical robot use and profits today come from less human-shaped machines built for specific jobs.

What's going on

Humanoid robots, meaning robots shaped like people with legs and arms, drew attention this week at the World Humanoid Robot Games in Beijing. They ran races, boxed, played football, and did obstacle courses. One robot reportedly beat Usain Bolt’s 100-metre time, but it could not slow down and crashed into a padded wall.

This kind of publicity has helped companies like China’s Unitree Robotics attract investor interest. Unitree recently listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange, and its shares surged at first before falling back.

But the Financial Times column argues that these human-like robots still struggle with everyday tasks that require fine hand control, like clearing a dining table or plugging in an electric vehicle charger. Making a robot copy the human body can also add complexity and cost, compared with simpler designs that do one job well.

Meanwhile, most robots already doing useful work are not humanoid. They assemble cars, move goods in warehouses, and help with routine surgery. China leads in industrial robots, with the International Federation of Robotics estimating about 2 million installed, far more than any other country.

What to watch

One possible near-term use for humanoid robots is data collection for training AI, meaning helping software learn from experience (like practice runs). More robots moving around in the real world could create more visual and sensor data, but that can raise privacy concerns if people are recorded at work.

Source: Financial Times