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We are back!
Hoping y’all had a great Christmas with your nearest and dearest.
It’s Monday, Curse and Coffee friends,
Today, we explore China’s border robots.
Hit reply and let us know what you think (we read all of your kind words).
Coffee at the ready…
The Big Sip
The take: China is stress-testing humanoid robots in a live border crossing while American competitors are still filming demos.
What happened: UBTECH Robotics began deploying its Walker S2 humanoid robots at the Fangchenggang checkpoint in Guangxi province this month under a $37 million government contract, one of the first large-scale uses of humanoid robots in law enforcement and public security.
Why it matters: The robots can autonomously replace their depleted batteries in about three minutes, enabling near-continuous 24-hour operation without human intervention. An operational capability deployed at a checkpoint handling millions of crossings annually.
What to watch: UBTECH aims to deliver 500 industrial humanoid robots by year-end and scale to 10,000 units by 2027. If Fangchenggang works, expect similar deployments at airports, seaports, and train stations.
Somewhere in Palo Alto, a demo robot just felt inadequate.
Sponsor Break
Before we slurp into today’s brew…
Here are some wordies from today’s sponsor.
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