Albert Einstein robot goes for sale in China

Life-like robots, including an Albert Einstein replica, went up for sale in the Chinese capital city on Friday, August 8.

A new robot shop has opened in Beijing selling humanoid robots ranging from mechanical butlers and cooks to replicas of scientists.

According to BBC news, the store offering 100 types of products is the first of its type in the East Asian country to sell humanoid and consumer oriented robots. The store named Robot Mall also offers maintenance services and spare parts.

The Robot Mall is located next to a robot themed restaurant where food is cooked by mechanical chefs and served by robots. 

The store director Wang Yifan said “If robots are to enter thousands of households, relying solely on robotics companies is not enough.”

The store allows visitors to interact with a wide range of robots from chess players to dogs.

The prices of the humanoid robots range from 2,000 yuan ($278, £207) to several million yuan.

China has been a leader in robotics globally and the government has provided a $20 billion subsidy to the industry over the past year.

The government is planning to provide a one trillion yuan fund to AI and robotics startups.

The startup opening comes amid the five-day World Robot Conference which started in Beijing today (Friday). Over 200 local and overseas companies will exhibit over 1500 products at the event.

China has also planned to host the world’s first Humanoid Robot Games in Beijing from August 14 to August 17.