In China, the city of Shenzhen became the scene of a scene worthy of a dystopian film: hundreds of Walker S2s perfectly aligned, marching in unison, towards the trucks responsible for shipping them to factories. The video, captured by a drone, caused online comments to explode. Some Internet users marvel at the technical prowess; others prefer to sleep with the light on.
A choreography that chills the blood a little
It must be said that the sequence has everything to make you feel uncomfortable: almost military synchronization, impeccable staging, and above all these robots are capable of removing then reinserting their own battery before setting off again in compact motion. Too good to be true? Many believed him. UBTECH had to clarify that the images were not generated by AI: “ Some said it seemed too perfect. But perfection isn’t manufactured, it’s ingeniously designed. » I promise, it’s 100% real.
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Behind this viral video lies a very concrete deployment. By the end of the year, UBTECH plans to send 500 Walkers to Chinese factories. This is the kind of announcement that drives discussions on the networks as much as disaster scenarios on the future of the job market…
We quickly understand why manufacturers are scrambling for them (800 million yuan in orders this year, or more than 113 million dollars). Among the biggest clients, we find BYD, Geely, FAW Volkswagen, Dongfeng and Foxconn, all seduced by the promises of an employee who takes no coffee breaks, no vacations, no sick leave (they don’t unionize either…). Robots are tested in real environments, and no longer in impeccably controlled laboratories.
The manufacturer’s shocking argument: the Walker S2 can change its battery on its own, in a few minutes. No need for a human to give him the batteries: he takes care of them himself, then goes back to the turbine. For production lines, this means an almost continuous presence, 24 hours a day. Which also explains the concerns: if a robot can hold a position on the assembly line non-stop, will it really need humans at its side?
Humanoid robotics, which seemed like a laboratory fantasy, is becoming a real industrial sector, and thousands of human jobs could pay the Price. Between the amused comments (“ My future boss, very happy to never give me a raise “) and alarmist warnings (” It’s Skynet with a factory badge ), distrust dominates. The prospect of seeing robust, tireless and surprisingly disciplined humanoids settling in Chinese factories, then elsewhere, does not leave one indifferent.
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