Amid China’s AI race, Honor joins rivals by developing humanoid robots aimed at transforming shopping and customer assistance services.
Honor Device Co. has announced its plan to launch its first humanoid robot later this week.
The aim is for the robot to provide consumer services such as shopping assistance. The robot will make its debut at the MWC Barcelona tech conference. The company claims that it is the first among its peers to enter the humanoid segment, although Huawei is also developing AI models for similar tasks.
Honor will also showcase its latest artificial intelligence advancements under what it calls the “Honor Robot Phone” banner.
There is a growing race among Chinese startups to embed artificial intelligence into physical products. For example, Unitree’s machines were featured in a spectacular acrobatic showcase during the country’s Lunar New Year gala broadcast.
Honor has launched a multibillion-dollar plan to expand into new industries, especially in artificial intelligence (AI) and new technology applications. Like its competitors Xiaomi, Oppo, and Vivo, the company is also developing its own AI services. These AI tools will be built into its smartphone software and other devices.
Honor is a privately held company supported by the Shenzhen government’s investment arm and several state-owned companies. It has said that it plans to go public, but it has not announced a timeline yet. Recently, Chinese AI companies, such as large language model developer Zhipu, have received strong interest from investors. Many investors are looking for local alternatives to companies like OpenAI and Anthropic.
