A posse of intelligent humanoid robots displaying some astounding abilities astonished visitors on Tuesday at the GBA International Artificial Intelligence and Robotics Summit 2024 in Kowloon.
Several robot innovators expressed a strong desire to establish roots in Hong Kong for in-depth technological research.
RobotEra, a startup founded by a team from Tsinghua University in Beijing, showcased a humanoid robot able to run at 3.6 meters per second in outdoor real-world scenarios. The robot also features two fully actuated and dexterous hands each with five fingers, which can perform tasks including picking up objects, pouring water and trimming plants.
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Ubtech, a Hong Kong-listed robot company, showcased its robots with motion interaction capabilities; their operational and task execution capabilities include grabbing an apple or an orange based on human request. Moreover, Ubtech has already realized in-depth applications in manufacturing scenarios, such as at the factories of automotive makers BYD, Audi First Automotive Works and Dongfeng Liuzhou Motor.
“We set up our headquarters for the Asia-Pacific region in Hong Kong last year,” said Michael Tam, chief brand officer of Ubtech. The company plans to apply to Hong Kong’s research foundation to conduct basic research and to explore the opportunities for commercial application.
“Meanwhile, we have set up an academic institution in Hong Kong, and established a strategic cooperation with the school of education at Hong Kong University in the field of artificial intelligence education.”
Another startup, LimX Dynamics, also plans to set up a company in Hong Kong. “We want to leverage the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government’s policies to enhance our research and development activities, and bring our products to the world,” said Ye Jiahui, overseas sales manager of LimX Dynamics, which is based in Shenzhen.
In the 2024-2025 Budget, the government announced a HK$3 billion ($385 million) subsidy scheme to encourage professional users to leverage the Cyberport’s AI supercomputing center. The subsidy will also be used to strengthen the cyber security and data protection of the center, and launch promotional and educational activities to encourage mainland Chinese and overseas AI experts, enterprises and research and development projects to come to Hong Kong.
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“The HKSAR government should spare no effort to adopt comprehensive measures to establish the AI ecosystem,” said Sun Dong, secretary for innovation, technology and industry.
Sun said the first phase of Cyberport’s AI supercomputing center will be put into operation this year and it will be one of the largest computing facilities in the region.
At the summit, 14 academicians and industry leaders from Switzerland, the United Kingdom, Germany, Israel, Singapore, and Chinese mainland shared their insights on the latest trends and applications of AI and robotics in the field of advanced manufacturing, new energy, life and health technology.
Contact the writer at thor_wu@chinadailyhk.com
