"Up to 226.6 Million Won, 88 Joints": What Is China’s 'Companion Robot'?

[Financial News] A Chinese ultra-high-end home humanoid robot has been unveiled, featuring skin texture, veins, fingerprints, and even eyelashes. With an appearance reminiscent of an idol, the product is being marketed as a companion robot.
Hongxing News reported on the 1st that Chinese robotics company UBTech Robotics Inc. held a global launch event in Shenzhen on the 30th of last month. At the event, the company unveiled the physical model of the U1 series, its first home humanoid robot under the consumer brand UWORLD.
The U1 series comes in male and female versions. The male model stands 183 cm tall and weighs 42 kg, while the female model is 168 cm tall and weighs 35.2 kg. It has 88 movable joints and can blink its eyes and rotate its head. However, its walking function was not demonstrated at the event. Despite its refined appearance, some observers said its actual movements seemed a beat too slow, leaving it looking awkward.
Marketed as a companion robot, the U1 series is priced from 119,800 yuan, or about 27.41 million won, to 990,000 yuan, or about 226.6 million won. Delivery to buyers is scheduled to begin in mid-September, and as of the 30th of last month, orders had already exceeded 13,000 units.
The high price is attributed to the complexity of the manufacturing process. At the current pre-mass-production stage, each eyebrow and eyelash reportedly has to be implanted by hand, one strand at a time. Founder Zhou Jian said, "This level of difficulty in mass production is rare even in the history of human manufacturing." He added, "This year's mass production volume is expected to reach 10,000 units, and the goal for 2027 is to achieve production capacity of 50,000 units."
[email protected] Han Seung-gon Reporter