Industry analysts have long viewed automakers as major proponents of humanoid robots, whose software is similar in many ways to self-driving cars. Chinese automaker Dongfeng announced that it plans to put its humanoid robot “Xiaodong” into assembly plants as early as October this year for parts sorting and quality control, and is expected to conduct small-volume trial production before the end of this year.
Zhang Renlin, chief engineer of the Smart Technology Division, said the company hopes to upgrade the robot’s capabilities to the level of human workers by the end of next year. In addition to humanoid robots, Dongfeng is also developing four-legged round robot dogs for patrolling and working in car dealerships, and is actively investing in international promotion: By the end of this century, Dongfeng plans to spend approximately $7.41 billion to export more than 50 car models and increase annual foreign deliveries to 1.5 million vehicles. The mass adoption of robots in production is also supported by other Chinese giants, including Chery, Xpeng Motors, Li Auto, Ceres and Zero Sports Cars.