UBTECH has held its Global Launch Event in Shenzhen, unveiling its long-term vision for human-robot coexistence and introducing the UWORLD U1 Series, described as the world's first mass-produced full-size ultra-bionic humanoid robot lineup. The series comprises three variants: the semi-torso U1 Lite, the full-body U1 Pro designed for high performance, and the high-mobility U1 Ultra. Pricing begins at RMB 119,800, and by the date of launch, total orders for the UWORLD U1 Series had exceeded 13,361 units.

During the event, James Zhou outlined the company's long-term roadmap for advancing collaboration between humans and intelligent robots. He described a three-phase evolution in which humanoid robots will first assume dangerous and repetitive tasks, then expand into daily life through service and companionship roles, and ultimately achieve increasingly natural and integrated interaction with people.

According to Zhou, UBTECH is transitioning from a conventional robotics manufacturer into a platform-driven enterprise focused on AI-powered robotics and intelligent infrastructure. He highlighted the company's strategic development plan spanning two decades. The first stage, from 2012 to 2022, centered on building foundational technologies and moving humanoid robotics from research environments into commercial and industrial applications. The second stage, covering 2023 to 2033, focuses on expanding into consumer robotics, with 2026 representing a significant milestone in bringing humanoid robots into everyday life.

Leveraging its proprietary full-stack humanoid robotics technologies, extensive application experience, and sustained investment in research and talent development, UBTECH has reached several notable industry achievements. Following the success of its industrial robotics business, the company ranked first worldwide in both revenue and sales volume for full-sized embodied intelligent humanoid robots in 2025. The introduction of UWORLD in 2026 marks its formal entry into the consumer robotics market.

Michael Tam emphasized that human-robot companionship could redefine approaches to emotional and psychological well-being. He suggested that companion robots may emerge as a major new consumer category by delivering personalized emotional support throughout different stages of life. He also referenced projections indicating that China's ultra-bionic humanoid robot market could expand from tens of billions of RMB to a trillion-RMB industry between 2026 and 2036.

UWORLD incorporates a fully proprietary end-to-end technology ecosystem that includes biomimetic skin technology, embodied intelligence hardware, operating systems, emotion-centric large language models, and vertically integrated manufacturing capabilities. This comprehensive technological framework is intended to address longstanding challenges associated with deploying humanoid robots in real-world environments.

The UWORLD U1 Series features 88 degrees of freedom and a proprietary dual-axis biomimetic cervical spine design, allowing it to reproduce approximately 90 percent of fundamental human movements. The robots are powered by what the company describes as the world's first emotion-aware large language model developed specifically for long-term companionship, capable of identifying more than 20 nuanced emotional states with accuracy exceeding 90 percent.

Its biomimetic fast-and-slow brain architecture, inspired by cognitive neuroscience, combines rapid intuitive responses within 500 milliseconds with advanced reasoning capabilities driven by large-scale AI models containing hundreds of billions of parameters. In addition, a proprietary biomimetic facial expression control system reduces speech-to-lip synchronization delays to less than 20 milliseconds, creating highly realistic human-like interactions.

The platform's Agent Memory OS serves as a persistent cross-temporal memory framework, enabling long-term digital continuity. A proactive care engine equipped with environmental awareness capabilities supports interaction without requiring wake words, allowing UWORLD robots to respond naturally to contextual information and social situations.

UWORLD also places significant emphasis on privacy and user data ownership. Its three-tier privacy architecture incorporates local-first processing, limited cloud dependence, and hardware-level user controls. Combined with advanced interaction technologies and a comprehensive safety framework, this approach aims to transform humanoid robots from functional devices into emotionally intelligent companions.

The U1 Series has been developed for a broad range of consumer and commercial applications. These include companionship, emotional support, lifestyle assistance, and social interaction, as well as hospitality and reception services, elder care, psychological support, tourism experiences, exhibitions, research and education, and premium household services.

During the launch event, UWORLD also introduced its "Human-Robot Companionship Initiative." The company noted that China has more than 90 million adults living alone and approximately 118 million elderly individuals living without family support. It further cited estimates suggesting that between 10 and 20 percent of people living alone meet clinical criteria for mental health disorders. To address these challenges, UWORLD announced plans to donate customized humanoid robots annually to support vulnerable populations, including children separated from one or both parents, seniors living independently, and families facing difficult circumstances, with the objective of providing sustained emotional companionship and psychological assistance.

As part of this initiative, UWORLD plans to donate 100 customized U1 Series humanoid robots in 2026. These robots will utilize 3D facial reconstruction and voiceprint replication technologies to recreate designated individuals, while incorporating emotion-driven interaction systems and dedicated long-term memory capabilities. Together with multimodal situational awareness technologies, the robots are intended to deliver structured psychological support services.

With the launch of UWORLD, UBTECH has established a robotics ecosystem spanning industrial, commercial, and consumer sectors. While the company's industrial Walker S Series has already entered mass production and begun commercial deliveries, UWORLD is positioned to become its next major growth driver by accelerating the adoption of humanoid robotics in consumer markets.

Zoomlion Heavy Industry Science & Technology Co., Ltd. drew significant interest at KOMATEK 2026 in Istanbul with the introduction of its humanoid robot, Z01. While the company showcased more than 40 advanced construction equipment products and secured orders worth over RMB 1 billion, the Z01 robot became one of the exhibition's standout attractions.

Developed for industrial assistance, intelligent navigation, and educational use cases, the bipedal robot demonstrated smooth mobility and precise task execution throughout the event. In a live presentation, Z01 performed a Tai Chi sequence, highlighting its sophisticated motion-control systems, balance capabilities, and interactive human-robot functionality, attracting considerable attention from visitors.

The unveiling of Z01 reflects Zoomlion's increasing focus on embodied artificial intelligence, which the company views as a key pillar of its future growth strategy alongside its existing businesses.

Zoomlion's position in embodied AI is supported by its long-standing investments in digital technologies. As one of the first construction machinery manufacturers in China to embrace industrial IoT solutions, the company has established a strong technological foundation through Zvalley, its AI-driven industrial internet platform, backed by a team of nearly 1,300 research and technical specialists.

Beginning in 2024, the company intensified its efforts in embodied AI by leveraging its expertise in both hardware and software development. This has led to the creation of an integrated technology ecosystem encompassing robotic hardware, critical components, motion and decision-control systems, and supporting software platforms. At the same time, AI and robotics innovations are being incorporated into Zoomlion's construction, agricultural, and mining equipment operations to accelerate intelligent automation.

By the close of 2025, Zoomlion had produced eight embodied AI robot prototypes spanning four primary categories, including both humanoid and wheeled robotic platforms. These systems have undergone testing in operational environments within Zoomlion Smart City, where they have been deployed for tasks such as material handling, facility inspections, loading and unloading operations, component pre-assembly, and quality control. The practical experience gained from these applications has generated valuable data and insights to support future commercial expansion.

Earlier in 2026, at Hannover Messe 2026, Zoomlion presented Robot Ops, its embodied AI development platform, and demonstrated coordinated workflows involving humanoid and logistics robots. The showcase illustrated the company's progress in translating embodied AI from research environments into industrial applications, with particular emphasis on adaptability, autonomous operation, and collaboration between multiple robotic systems.

Today, embodied AI robots are already supporting a range of manufacturing activities within Zoomlion Smart City. The company continues to pursue an industrially focused approach to embodied intelligence, prioritizing practical applications and foundational capability building. Through the development of comprehensive industrial data resources and engineering-driven robot design and manufacturing processes, Zoomlion aims to enable large-scale adoption of embodied AI technologies across diverse industries.

James Choate-Deeds and his wife, Caryn, clasped hands as they waited for the results, bracing themselves for what they might hear.

“Hearing the words ‘you have cancer’ hits you like a punch to the stomach,” James recalled. “Caryn squeezed my hand, and we both broke down. But after that moment, your mindset shifts—you focus entirely on what comes next.”

At 57, James was considered relatively young for a prostate cancer diagnosis, as most men are diagnosed around age 66. He had led an active lifestyle, stayed fit, and had no family history of the disease, making the news especially difficult to absorb. Still, he quickly recognized there were reasons for hope.

“The cancer was caught early, and it wasn’t aggressive,” he explained. “That gave me time to research my options and carefully choose a treatment. That’s when I discovered Hugo.”

Robotic-assisted surgery
Robotic-assisted surgery (RAS) is a sophisticated form of minimally invasive surgery that has become widely adopted over the past 20 years. It is now a preferred approach for prostate removal due to its advantages over traditional surgical techniques for both patients and surgeons.

The Hugo™ RAS system, Medtronic’s first soft-tissue robotic platform, recently received clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for urologic procedures such as prostate surgery. When James underwent his procedure, the system was still being evaluated in clinical trials.

“As an architect, I understand the value of advanced technology,” James said. “When my surgeon explained that Hugo represented the next step forward in surgical innovation and felt it was the best option available, I was confident in that choice.”

How the system works
The Hugo™ RAS system uses four robotic arms designed to mirror the movements of a surgeon’s hands. These arms can hold specialized instruments and a camera, and they can be arranged around the operating table to accommodate each patient’s anatomy. The surgeon operates from an open console, wearing 3D glasses and viewing the procedure on a large, high-definition screen while controlling the robotic arms with precision.

“Although the procedure is guided by visuals, it’s certainly not like playing a video game,” said Dr. James Porter, a urologic surgeon and Chief Medical Officer for Robotic Surgical Technologies and Digital Technologies at Medtronic. “It requires constant coordination between your hands, feet, and eyes. The robotic joints replicate human motion but with far greater stability, allowing for exceptional precision—especially when suturing.”

Dr. Porter, who performed James’ surgery, has completed nearly 6,000 robotic-assisted procedures throughout his career. He also spent five years collaborating with Medtronic’s engineers and researchers during the development of the Hugo™ system. According to Dr. Porter, the platform offers several key advantages:

“These features are all designed with one goal in mind—helping surgeons provide the highest level of care,” Dr. Porter said. “At the end of the day, it’s about improving patients’ lives.”

The future of surgery
Despite advancements, nearly 90% of surgeries worldwide are still performed without robotic assistance, and about 60% are done as open surgeries. This limits patient access to the benefits of minimally invasive techniques, such as fewer complications, shorter hospital stays, and quicker recovery times.

Currently, the Hugo™ RAS system is FDA-cleared in the U.S. for urologic procedures. Medtronic plans to seek approval for additional uses, including general and gynecologic surgery, aligning with indications already approved in more than 30 countries.

“The precision offered by robotic-assisted surgery delivers tremendous benefits to patients,” said Rajit Kamal, vice president and general manager of Robotic Surgical Technologies at Medtronic. “Robotics and digital innovation are transforming surgery into something more precise, consistent, and personalized.”

Dr. Porter believes the next major leap forward will come from integrating robotic systems with advanced software and artificial intelligence.

“One day, surgeons may have real-time access to 3D models of organs during procedures,” he said. “We could see digital guidance showing the ideal angle or approach for an instrument. That kind of insight could be game-changing for surgeons and expand patient access even further.”

While contributing to that future at Medtronic, Dr. Porter continues to care for patients like James.

More than two years after his surgery, James remains highly active—hiking, skiing, playing hockey, traveling frequently, and continuing his work in architecture.

“I’m rarely sitting still,” he joked. “Thanks to an incredible surgical team and the Hugo system, the surgery and recovery felt manageable. Life is wonderful, and I’m deeply thankful for the technology that helped make it that way.”