More and more humanoid robot kiosks are appearing in China.
Yesterday, I passed by a subway entrance in Guangzhou and experienced a retail kiosk operated by a humanoid robot again, buying a bottle of water.
The process was the same: select items on a screen, scan a QR code for mobile payment, and the humanoid robot retrieves the product. (However, it didn't interact with me at all.)
I looked it up, and the wheeled humanoid robot is named S1, from AutoLife Robotics in Shenzhen. It uses omnidirectional wheels for movement and a lifting body. It's 1-1.6m tall, weighs 72kg, and has a 10-hour battery life. A single arm can carry 3-5kg.
Furthermore, this humanoid robot is suitable for lightweight tasks in retail, convenience stores, supermarkets, and warehouse sorting.
Humanoid robot convenience stores are becoming a part of people's lives.
A couple of days ago, I passed by the Zhangjiang AI Town in Shanghai. At the GalBOT "Space Capsule," I bought a bottle of Coca-Cola from a convenience store operated by a humanoid robot.
It was smoother than I expected: screen selection, QR code payment, and the humanoid robot G1 retrieving and delivering the goods – all in one seamless process. It's worth noting that a human worker was still present inside, handling emergency situations.
However, it can't yet take orders through speech, but this will change soon. People will be able to shop by naturally conversing with G1, paying with palm or facial recognition (e.g., Alipay), and the humanoid robot will autonomously fulfill orders without ever getting tired, always full of enthusiasm and patience.
It is expected that convenience stores operated by humanoid robots will soon appear in the core areas and tourist zones of many Chinese cities this year, with companies like GalBOT, Astribot, and AI² Robotics deploying them in large numbers. Its value goes beyond simply achieving intelligent automation in retail; it's becoming an integral part of people's future technological lives.