Foreign

How close are humanoid robots to everyday life?

Published

1 month ago

September 6, 2025

By Wang Haonan, People’s Daily

The 2025 World Robot Conference opened in Beijing on August 18, bringing together more than 200 global robotics companies and unveiling over 100 new products. Just days later, the city hosted another event: the 2025 World Humanoid Robot Games, the first of its kind globally, which kicked off on August 14, drawing 280 teams from 16 countries and regions.

At the games, Chinese tech firm Unitree Robotics’s G1 humanoid robot completed the 100-meter obstacle race in 33.71 seconds, while its H1 robot won the 1,500-meter race in 394.40 seconds. Although these results fall short of professional human athletes, Unitree founder Wang Xingxing expressed confidence in the trajectory of progress: “Robots will soon outperform humans.”

Today, humanoid robots extend beyond racing tracks to precision factory tasks. Yet a pressing question persists: how close are they to seamless integration into everyday life?

According to Jia Baoxiong, a researcher at the embodied robotics center of the Beijing Institute for General Artificial Intelligence, humanoid robots have already demonstrated remarkable abilities in specialized tasks such as sprinting and dancing.

But to transition into everyday life, breakthroughs are required in several areas: enhanced autonomy in open environments, greater precision and stability in movement and manipulation, and above all, safe and reliable interaction with humans, Jia added.

“We are seeing continuous breakthroughs in hardware performance, leaps in AI-driven decision-making, and stronger foundations in datasets and virtual simulation,” said Xu Xiaolan, president of the Chinese Institute of Electronics, at the World Robot Conference. Humanoid robots are now at a critical stage, moving from laboratory experimentation toward industrial application, Xu added.

Still, obstacles remain. Why do some robots stray from their lanes in a race or misfire in a boxing match? The explanation often lies in human involvement: many robots are still remotely controlled by humans, making performance dependent on operator skill and vulnerable to electromagnetic interference.

To encourage intelligence and autonomy, the 2025 World Humanoid Robot Games introduced innovative scoring. Few spectators realized that Tiangong Ultra, developed by the Beijing Humanoid Robot Innovation Center, and crowned champion of the 100-meter dash, was not actually the first to cross the finish line. But as the only competitor to complete the race using a fully autonomous navigation system without human control, its recorded time was multiplied by a 0.8 coefficient, giving it the highest overall ranking.

Smarter robots will gradually emerge through incremental breakthroughs, said Xiong Youjun, general manager of the Beijing Humanoid Robot Innovation Center. “Step by step, they will grow in capability until they can truly serve and assist us,” he added.

For now, hardware refinement remains essential, but according to Wang, the larger bottleneck lies in embodied intelligence itself, which has yet to reach maturity. This, he argued, is the key factor holding back large-scale adoption of humanoid robots in daily life.

In Jia’s view, humanoid robots are already delivering value in performance and entertainment, and when combined with wheeled platforms, they can be deployed for sorting and logistics in warehouses, supermarkets, and pharmacies. But moving them into households will require not just technical breakthroughs, but also solutions to ethical and cost concerns.

Price remains a critical challenge. Training embodied AI models requires vast amounts of real-world trajectory data. “High-quality data is scarce and expensive, driving up development expenses,” noted Xiong.

Ethical considerations are equally pressing. “How can we protect our privacy once humanoid robots enter homes? How should we coexist with them?” Such questions sparked vigorous debate at the 2025 World Robot Conference.

Despite challenges, the industry’s outlook is robust. According to the International Federation of Robotics, the global humanoid robot market is projected to grow at a compound annual rate of 71 percent from 2021 to 2030. The Chinese Institute of Electronics predicts that the nation’s humanoid robot market will reach 870 billion yuan (about $122 billion) by 2030.

Humanoid robots continue to evolve at a remarkable speed. The day they “run” into households and integrate into everyday life may not be as far away as it seems.

Foreign

Trump at UN: Iran ‘Can Never Be Allowed’ to Obtain Nuclear Weapons

Published

2 weeks ago

September 24, 2025

Our Reporter

By: Fabian Apechihin

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday told the United Nations General Assembly that Iran must never be permitted to acquire nuclear weapons, branding Tehran “the world’s number one sponsor of terror.”

Trump said Iran’s nuclear enrichment capabilities were “totally obliterated” during June’s 12-day conflict, crediting a US-led strike codenamed Operation Midnight Hammer.

“Seven American B-2 bombers dropped fourteen 30,000-pound bombs on Iran’s key nuclear facility, completely destroying it,” Trump declared. “No other country could have done what we did. We have the greatest weapons on Earth. We hate to use them, but we did what the world has wanted for 22 years.”

The president said that, shortly after taking office, he had offered Iran full cooperation in exchange for halting its nuclear program, but Tehran rejected the overture. Instead, he accused Iran of escalating threats to its neighbors and to US interests.

According to Trump, the military campaign forced a breakthrough, paving the way for an end to the 12-day war between Israel and Iran. He cast the truce as both a victory for American power and a step toward regional stability.

While hailing the strike as a historic achievement, Trump’s speech underscored the continuing hostility between Washington and Tehran, despite what he described as a short-term ceasefire.

Do you want me to sharpen this into a hard-news brief (just the essentials in 4–5 sentences), or keep the expanded version with military details and quotes?

Foreign

Trump to Criticize ‘Globalist’ Bodies, Palestinian Recognitions in UN Speech

Published

2 weeks ago

September 23, 2025

Our Reporter

By: Fabian Apechihin

US President Donald Trump will take aim at“globalist institutions” and Western governments’ recognition of a Palestinian state in his address to the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday, the White House said on Monday.

Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said Trump’s first UN speech of his second term will highlight “the renewal of American strength around the world” while accusing multilateral bodies of undermining global order.

“The president will also touch upon how globalist institutions have significantly decayed the world order, and he will articulate his straightforward and constructive vision for the world,” Leavitt said.

Trump, a longtime critic of the UN, has previously slashed US funding to its agencies and pulled Washington out of several multilateral agreements under his “America First” agenda.

On the sidelines of the assembly, Trump will hold a multilateral meeting with leaders of key Muslim nations — including Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Turkey, Pakistan, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, and Jordan — Leavitt disclosed.

The speech comes amid tensions over recent decisions by Britain, Canada, and Australia to recognize a Palestinian state, with France expected to follow. Trump has condemned the moves, arguing they amount to “a reward to Hamas.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, due to speak at the UN on Friday, has vowed to expand settlements in the occupied West Bank in response to the recognitions.

Trump will also meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to discuss Kyiv’s push for Western-backed security guarantees, and separately hold talks with Argentina’s President Javier Milei after Washington signaled possible economic support for Buenos Aires.

Would you like me to make the headline sharper and more dramatic (e.g. “Trump to Blast UN, Western Allies Over Palestine at General Assembly”) or keep it formal and neutral like above?

Foreign

The Qatari Ministry of Interior has dismissed claims that it introduced new visa restrictions targeting Nigerian passport holders.

Published

4 weeks ago

September 11, 2025

Our Reporter

By: Fabian Apechihin

According to BBC Pidgin, an official of the ministry said Nigerians remain eligible to apply for visas, with no changes to existing procedures.

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The viral claims had alleged that Qatari authorities banned male applicants from travelling to the Gulf state unless accompanied by family members.

The reports also suggested that only women or families could apply for visas, with requirements including a five-star hotel booking and proof of a return flight before consideration.

According to the claims, the purported measures were linked to frequent cases of overstays by Nigerian travellers.

However, Hayya, Qatar’s official digital platform for e-visa services, confirmed that the application process remains unchanged.

“There has been no suspension or changes to the current procedures. If any updates are to be made, they will be announced on our official platforms,” Hayya said.

Qatar has witnessed a steady rise in Nigerian visitors in recent years, particularly as an alternative travel hub during the diplomatic row between Nigeria and the United Arab Emirates (2021–2024), which led to visa restrictions and suspension of direct flights.