Robotics

Dreame and Unitree: Are China’s young tech founders sabotaging themselves?

Dreame’s Yu Hao and Unitree’s Wang Xingxing have taken very different paths to the top. Their contrasting leadership styles point to a common challenge for young founders: knowing when to put themselves forward and when to let the company take centre stage, says Chinese commentator Ni Tao.

Ni Tao

14 Sep 2026

Could the PLA’s robot soldiers be used against Taiwan?

China is developing humanoid robots that could enter the battlefield within a decade. While Taiwan is a potential scenario, experts say the PLA’s push reflects a broader drive to prepare for the warfare of the future. Lianhe Zaobao correspondent Edwin Ong finds out more.

Edwin Ong

09 Sep 2026

[Video] Shenzhen is not just China’s factory. It wants to be its innovation engine

Shenzhen is betting its future on innovation. From AI and robotics to electric aircraft, talent and startups, manufacturing and capital are converging in Shenzhen, putting the city at the heart of China’s tech race. Lianhe Zaobao correspondent Lee Chee Yang finds out more.

Lee Chee Yang

07 Sep 2026

Why China is sending humanoid robots to school

China is rapidly expanding state-backed training facilities where hundreds of humanoid robots learn real-world tasks, leveraging massive hardware production into AI brainpower dominance. Lianhe Zaobao journalist Meng Dandan gives a glimpse into one of these facilities.

Meng Dandan

04 Sep 2026

[Video] China’s robots are getting faster, stronger and more human

The second World Humanoid Robot Games saw humanoids breaking human running records and executing complex dance moves and precise hand tasks. What a difference a year makes. ThinkChina’s Yi Jina finds out more.

Yi Jina

28 Aug 2026

Faster than Bolt, but can China’s robots fold clothes?

Humanoid robots’ real test lies in the real world. By putting them through standardised sporting and real-world tasks, the World Humanoid Robot Games aim to expose their shortcomings, generate valuable data and lay the groundwork for industry standards and large-scale commercial deployment, says academic Zhang Tiankan.

Zhang Tiankan

27 Aug 2026

Behind Unitree’s plunge: China’s premature robot boom

Unitree Robotics’ dramatic stock swings are fuelling fears of a humanoid robot bubble, exposing the risks of companies entering public markets before their businesses are ready. Lianhe Zaobao associate China news editor Chen Jing examines the issue.

Chen Jing

26 Aug 2026

China’s AI-driven robotics boom faces IPO reality check

China’s strides in “embodied AI” — the integration of artificial intelligence into physical systems like robots — is built on world-class manufacturing and bold investor bets. But with IPOs looming, startups must prove their robots can generate real commercial value — not just hype.

Caixin Global

31 Jul 2026

The new AI blocs: Are China’s WAICO and America’s Pax Silica splitting the tech world?

China’s WAICO and the US-led Pax Silica represent two competing approaches to AI governance. As both gain traction, the question is whether they will create rival technological spheres or coexist within a shared global framework, says academic Hao Nan.

Hao Nan

24 Jul 2026

Michael Wee: Why Singapore’s PATEC chose Taiwan over SGX

PATEC founder Michael Wee shares why he listed his precision engineering company in Taiwan, how AI revived its hard disk drive business, and his plans for PATEC’s next phase of growth in this interview with Lianhe Zaobao associate business editor Chew Boon Leong.

Chew Boon Leong

22 Jul 2026

How China’s changing the brain-computer interface race

By taking a semi-invasive approach to developing brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) — systems that link brain signals to computers — China is moving ahead of the US in commercialising BCI applications. Lianhe Zaobao correspondent Liu Sha examines this development.

Liu Sha

20 Jul 2026

AI drives markets as valuations race ahead of earnings

From Wall Street to Shanghai, stock markets are hitting record highs as investors crowd into a narrowband of AI and semiconductor giants, turning the rally into a concentrated surge rather than a broad advance. But with gains increasingly reliant on a handful of megacap companies, is the AI boom an overstretched bubble?

Caixin Global

11 May 2026