Chinese electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer Nio is reportedly exploring the potential of humanoid robots in its production lines. A recent report by China Star Market revealed that Nio is testing the Kuavo robot, developed by Leju Robotics, at its factories.
Notably, Kuavo is the first HarmonyOS-powered robot unveiled by Huawei at the HDC 2024 developer conference in June.
Nio is not the only car manufacturer exploring the use of humanoid robots in assembly lines. However, it appears to be leading this development.
Previous Initiatives
Prior to testing Kuavo, another humanoid robot, the Walker S from UBTech Robotics, underwent training at a Nio factory in February 2024. This marked the first instance of real-world training for the Walker S robot within a new energy vehicle (NEV) factory setting.
During the training, the Walker S utilized its image capture and transmission capabilities for quality control tasks like inspecting door locks, seat belts, and headlight covers. Additionally, the robot was able to affix vehicle logos, as shown in a video shared by UBTech Robotics.
Focus on Humanoid Robotics
Nio’s interest in humanoid robotics extends beyond individual robots. In April 2024, Yi Peng, Nio’s head of humanoid robots for intellectual engineering, revealed the formation of a “squad” of humanoid robots at the China Humanoid Robot Ecology Conference. Yi also outlined two key areas of focus for Nio’s humanoid robotics endeavors:
- Fixing humanoid robotic arms in tight spaces and multitasking with 5G and vision algorithms.
- Using humanoid robots in some quality control processes.
While the extent of Nio’s collaboration with Huawei and Leju Robotics remains unclear, the testing of the HarmonyOS-powered Kuavo robot is a significant step in the company’s efforts to incorporate humanoid robots into its manufacturing processes.
