The 2026 World Robot Conference opened its doors in Beijing on Wednesday, marking one of the largest gatherings of robotics companies in the world this year. Over 300 mostly domestic companies are displaying more than 2,000 exhibits and launching over 150 new products at the event, which runs through Sunday.
The conference comes amid a surge of investor interest in humanoid robots, seen as a potential new source of industrial growth for China and an arena of technological competition with the United States. Chinese robot makers showed off humanoids sorting parcels, packing mobile phones, and helping with household chores, seeking to demonstrate a shift from crowd-pleasing displays to broader commercial use.
In a notable highlight, Madison Huang — a senior Nvidia executive and daughter of the U.S. chipmaker's CEO Jensen Huang — made an unannounced visit to the event. Huang, who oversees marketing for Nvidia's Omniverse and robotics platforms, watched robots perform flying kicks and dance routines before stopping at a companion-robot booth to ask about its sensors. Her visit highlighted the role of foreign suppliers in China's push to develop robots despite geopolitical tensions and U.S. chip export restrictions.
At the opening ceremony, Xin Guobin, vice minister of industry and information technology, said robotics had become "an important force" in China's economic and social development.
Several companies demonstrated real-world deployments: Leju showed robots moving and sorting crates in European factories and Chinese auto plants; Robotera had over 100 parcel-sorting robots deployed in 15 warehouses nationwide; and DexForce demonstrated humanoid robots packing mobile phones at a Lens Technology factory, a supplier to Apple and Huawei.
The event signals China's accelerating push to move beyond demonstrations and into mass commercial deployment of humanoid robots.
