Expo shows robust homemade R&D trend in robot industry

Date：2025-05-22 08:48:37 Click：19次

Shenzhen-based N&S Electronic shows their chips at the 14th Beijing International Robot Exhibition in Beijing on May 21, 2025. Photo: Liu Caiyu/GT

This year marks the full-scale boom of China's robotics industry. From food delivery and industrial manufacturing to medical assistance and smart homes, Chinese-made robots are rapidly expanding into global markets at an astonishing pace. At the 14th Beijing International Robot Exhibition, which kicked off on Wednesday, the Global Times witnessed the robust homemade R&D trend in robot supply chain.

The three-day expo brings together some domestic suppliers specializing in humanoid and industrial robots, including sensors, controllers, key components, and software and hardware solutions.

At the booth for Shenzhen-based N&S Electronic, salespeople were busy introducing their products, ranging from microcontroller units, communication devices and chips to connectors and crystal oscillators, to potential customers.

"After adopting Chinese chips, a German company reduced the cost of its materials by 25 percent," reads a display at their exhibition booth. Hu Lin, a company representative, told the Global Times that most of their domestic suppliers offer components with quality that is competitive against leading international brands. Growing numbers of customers from Europe, the US and Russia are inquiring about Chinese-made alternatives.

The integrated joints, reducers, lead screws and other components required for automobile production are also accessories for humanoid robots.

Shanghai Laimu Electronics is capitalizing on its established automotive supply chain expertise to meet the booming demand for robotic components. At the ongoing expo, the company unveiled newly developed parts for robots such as joint modules and circuit boards as well as multi-fingered hands.

Shanghai Laimu Electronics unveils newly developed parts for robots such as joint modules and circuit boards and multi-fingered hands at the 14th Beijing International Robot Exhibition in Beijing on May 21, 2025. Photo: Liu Caiyu/GT

"Currently, 70 percent of our customers are automotive manufacturers including BYD and Xiaomi," said Cai Qi, the head assistant for Shanghai Laimu Electronics' innovation research institute, in an interview with the Global Times. "As these automakers expand into robotics, we've aligned our R&D and production capabilities to develop specialized components for this emerging sector. This year we aim to output mature and stable robot joint products, and complete the processing of precision instruments for robots."

Cai noted that global leaders like Boston Dynamics possess distinct advantages in core technologies. Therefore, China has to rely on its own domestic R&D breakthroughs in producing key components in order to ensure the stable and healthy growth of the country's robotics industry.

China's humanoid robot technology is currently in a crucial breakthrough stage, moving from the laboratory to practical applications and gradually achieving mass production. All key technologies are undergoing continuous iterative upgrades, industry observers said.

According to a report by the People's Daily, the number of intellectual property applications in artificial intelligence is experiencing a strong growth trend. The report, citing the World Intellectual Property Organization, said that China has become the country with the largest number of global artificial intelligence patents, accounting for 60 percent of the total.

Zhenjiang NFD High Performance Material, which was founded in 2021, specializes in plastic modification. Li Wei, a company manager, told the Global Times at the expo that with its professional domestic R&D team, the company aims to support robot manufacturers by producing customized plastics for key components.

"The construction of humanoid robots requires hundreds of discrete components, driving significant demand for advanced lightweight materials to maximize allocation space for battery systems and primary drive motors. With the fast-rising humanoid robots and robotic dog industry, our annual revenue is projected to surpass 70 million yuan this year," Li said.

The manager said the robust, mature and innovative supply chain in the robot sector is one of the key reasons that Chinese companies are able to compete with foreign companies.

As of the end of December 2024, the number of companies in China's intelligent robotics industry surpassed 451,700, marking a 206.73 percent increase from the end of 2020 and a 19.39 percent rise from the end of 2023, demonstrating steady and robust growth, the China Central Television reported, citing State Administration for Market Regulation.