Preface

The advancement in household robotics is attracting significant investment as technology integrates more deeply into daily life. X Square Robot, a pioneering startup in China's robot industry, has recently captivated the attention of investors by securing a major funding round. This article explores X Square Robot's innovative journey and its outlook on revolutionizing human-machine interactions.

Lazy bag

X Square Robot has raised $100 million, led by Alibaba Cloud, marking significant progress in China's humanoid robot field. The startup's innovative approaches promise to transform AI integration in robotics.

Main Body

The Chinese humanoid robotics industry is witnessing a historic moment as X Square Robot secures a substantial investment of $100 million in a funding round spearheaded by Alibaba Cloud.
This Shenzhen-based startup, established less than two years ago, marks its eighth round of financing, amassing a total of approximately 2 billion yuan ($280 million), as reported by Chief Operating Officer Yang Qian.

Joining the latest funding effort are HongShan, formerly known as Sequoia Capital China, along with notable investors like Meituan, Legend Star, Legend Capital, and INCE Capital. Despite the impressive funding, the startup has refrained from disclosing its current valuation.

The interest from venture capitalists stems from the belief that the integration of generative artificial intelligence with humanoid robots will significantly enhance the interaction between machines and humans. Yang highlighted the need for robots capable of performing complex tasks independently, a mission that has been limited by traditional robot designs, primarily focused on rudimentary functions such as object manipulation.

In a significant stride towards embracing technology, X Square Robot unveiled its "open-source foundation model for embodied AI," known as Wall-OSS. This open-source initiative allows developers worldwide to access and utilize the code, potentially accelerating advancements in robotics tech intertwined with hardware elements like robots and autonomous vehicles.

Yang acknowledges the existing gap between AI advancements for conversational and code-generating purposes and AI application in robotics. She anticipates a timeline of at least a year before achieving capabilities akin to those of ChatGPT 3.5. Establishing benchmarks for "embodied AI" remains a challenge, as it lacks well-defined standards that could gauge progress accurately.

Despite relying on Nvidia chips for computational tasks, Yang revealed that the robot's other functionalities are supported by local, less powerful automotive chips. The debut of Quanta X2 from X Square Robot further exemplifies their innovative thrust. This robot, equipped for comprehensive cleaning and refined human-like touch capabilities, showcases the startup's commitment to integrating more sophisticated functionalities into robotic design.

While X Square Robot has yet to develop a product suitable for widespread consumer distribution, the Quanta X2's capabilities signify a promising direction for future market entries. Retail prices, influenced by use-case specifications, are not deviating from the typical $80,000 price tag indicated by industry research entity Humanoid Guide. In contrast, competitor Unitree offers humanoids at $16,000, though functionality details remain imprecise.

The pathway to consumer market penetration heavily depends on price reductions through hardware cost optimization, a target expected within the next three to five years. The company is already generating revenue in sectors like education, hospitality, and eldercare services while exploring opportunities in Japan and Singapore.

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