Robots poised for their ‘ChatGPT moment’ as physical AI nears breakthrough: report
Unitree CEO Wang Xingxing predicts humanoid robots could reach a 'ChatGPT moment' by 2028, handling most everyday tasks through voice and text commands
In a new tech debate, robots manufacturing firms are predicting the humanoid robotics industry is approaching a 'ChatGPT moment' by 2028, enabling robots to handle most everyday tasks through simple voice and text commands.
As reported, the CEO of Unitree Robotics, Wang Xingxing, stated that the humanoid robotics industry is rapidly approaching its own "ChatGPT moment", predicting that major AI breakthroughs will enable robots to perform most daily tasks through simple voice and text commands within the next few years.
Shares in China's best-known humanoid robot maker fell 11% on Thursday, a day after soaring nearly sixfold in their market debut, highlighting intense investor enthusiasm for a fledgling sector that enjoys strong backing from Beijing.
The global AI boom that has reshaped the world economy was sparked in late 2022 by ChatGPT's breakthrough large language model, a watershed moment that drove mass adoption.
No comparable inflection point has yet emerged for world models, the physical AI simulation systems designed to help robots understand and navigate real-world environments.
While addressing a major robot conference in Beijing,the Hangzhou-based startup's founder and CEO, Wang Xingxing said, "We are marching towards a 'ChatGPT moment' in embodied intelligence."
Wang added that the industry is nearing a breakthrough where robots can be placed in unfamiliar environments and complete most tasks through simple voice or text instructions.
"We hope that in the future, we can see a robot be introduced into an unfamiliar household and it can achieve approximately 80% of tasks successfully through voice or text commands," he said.
"It is an important tipping point for the robot industry to usher in explosive growth."
At the same time, Wang cautioned that a major leap in robot software could arrive within two to three years in an optimistic scenario, or within five to 10 years at the latest.
"Relative to the mood around World Robot Conference and Unitree’s spectacular IPO, Wang Xingxing was notably sober about current capabilities," said Georg Stieler, head of automation at robotics consultancy Stieler.
Unitree's Wang said the company's biggest current investment in terms of capital and manpower is in world models and that it is "lagging behind” in the real-world application of physical AI models.
According to industry data, Unitree is the world's largest producer of robot dogs and the second-biggest maker of humanoid robots by shipments.
Founder of Chinese robotic startup, expects the sector's "ChatGPT moment" to arrive by 2028, defining it as the point when robots can perform about 70% to 80% of everyday tasks without specialized training.
"With continued accumulation of data and further technological breakthroughs, we expect to reach the 'ChatGPT moment' for embodied intelligence by 2028,"said Wang.
