China's humanoid robot in fine-tuning stage: industry conference

Chinese industry experts attending a major conference in Shanghai on Friday described China's technology for humanoid robots in the fine-tuning stage before their large presence in the services sectors.

The second China Humanoid Robot Ecology Conference opened on Friday at the Shanghai Automobile Exhibition Center, bringing together industry leaders and scholars from home and abroad to explore the latest trends in this rapidly evolving sector.

The two-day event showcases leading Chinese companies' cutting-edge technologies and innovative products.

"We humans are fully intelligent beings. We hope that humanoid robots will start with a single form of intelligence. The goal is to master one task perfectly and then move on to the next, gradually developing from there. We must respect the fundamental laws of scientific and technological development," said Pro. Chu Junhao, an academician at the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS).

"The ultimate goal for humanoid robots is certainly to become service robots. The technology is still being fine-tuned in factories or other scenarios before it can enter the service sector," said Leng Xiaokun, founder of Shenzhen-based robotics startup Leju.

Chinese industry professionals have outlined a three-phase roadmap for humanoid robot commercialization. The first phase involves applications in research and commercial service scenarios, such as showroom tours. The second phase, currently being tested, focuses on industrial applications, including factory tasks such as automobile assembly lines. The final phase will introduce humanoid robots into everyday environments, such as households, for general-purpose services.

According to the Chinese Institute of Electronics, China's humanoid robot market is projected to reach 870 billion yuan (about 120 billion U.S. dollars) by 2030.

International scholars from countries such as South Korea and Russia also shared insights on technological achievements and industrial practices at the conference.

China's humanoid robot in fine-tuning stage: industry conference

Local banks and financial companies across China have been using innovative funding services and tailored measures to help foreign trade enterprises stabilize their foreign trade, tackling difficulties from external impacts.

In the first four months of this year, China's total goods imports and exports in yuan-denominated terms expanded 2.4 percent to 14.14 trillion yuan (around 1.9 trillion U.S. dollars), official data showed.

In Pingxiang City, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, a local bank and a government financing guarantee institution have been cooperating to issue low-interest-rate "border trade loans," or innovative special loans of up to 10 million yuan (around 1.39 million U.S. dollars) for enterprises and individuals engaging in border trade.

"I received the loan the day after I signed the agreement with the bank," said Shen Wuyang, deputy general manager of a local food company, which was able to continue its latest round of research and development with his loan of three million yuan.

"We listed more than 70 companies (with such funding needs), and have issued over 40 million yuan of loans to six of them," said Zhang Qing, head of the Guangxi branch of the Agricultural Bank of China.

Most of China's cross-border e-commerce entities operate in Shenzhen in southern Guangdong Province, where many could not or dared not take orders due to uncertainties in foreign trade. To deal with this situation, the Shenzhen Financial Regulatory Bureau announced on April 22 that six Shenzhen-based property insurers jointly issued China's first cross-border e-commerce credit guarantee insurance, which provides credit guarantees for domestic purchases by cross-border e-commerce platforms.

Local Chinese banks offer innovative services to help stabilize foreign trade