Jack Ma's Ant Group Unveils R1 Humanoid Robot To Advance China's AI Push

Jack Ma-backed Ant Group Co. showcased its first humanoid robot on Thursday, formally joining an intensifying effort by Chinese companies to compete with the US in commercialising frontier technology.

The company's unit Shanghai Ant Lingbo Technology Co., also known as Robbyant, demonstrated its R1 humanoid model at the 2025 Inclusion Conference on the Bund in Shanghai. The robot can serve as a tour guide, sort medicine at pharmacies, provide medical consultation or perform basic kitchen tasks.

Ant is the latest big name to delve into humanoid robots, a nascent field fought over by the likes of Tesla Inc. and dotted by up-and-comers like Hangzhou neighbor Unitree Robotics. China, which already has a higher density of robots per human on its factory floors than the US and Japan, is preparing humanoids to move into increasingly complex roles.

Unlike other companies that focus on hardware development, Ant is honing in on developing brains for robots. Ant views humanoids as a strategic gateway to popularizing AI chatbots and assistants, betting that large AI models - still in the early stages of transforming society - will soon reshape how humans interact with machines, according to Zhu Xing, chief executive officer of Robbyant. 

"If humanoid robots are used in homes, they won't just help with everyday tasks, they'll act like super-smart brains, tapping into cloud-based AI to assist with even more things," said Zhu. "It makes sense for Ant to be doing this because our goal is to make people's lives easier, whether it be in payments, finance or digital public services."

While Ant is best known as the fintech company behind the Alipay digital payments system, it's been investing heavily in artificial intelligence to ensure its competitiveness in a new era led by the likes of ChatGPT and DeepSeek. The company is developing its own large language model, BaiLing, and testing ways to train it with cheaper, made-in-China semiconductors.

The R1 is built using parts from Chinese suppliers including Ti5 robot for the joint modules and Galaxea AI - which is backed by Ant - for the chassis, according to people familiar with the matter. The company is also in discussions with Unitree and Shanghai-listed Orbbec Inc., the people added, asking not to be named as the information is private. Ant and the other companies didn't respond to emailed queries on the suppliers.

"The actual physical manufacturing can probably be outsourced relatively easily, but developing a sound and scalable model is key," said Andy Mok, a Beijing-based senior research fellow at the non-government think tank Center for China and Globalization. "One of the most important prerequisites will be the AI model and not necessarily the manufacturing or engineering. China has formidable competitors in this space."

Ant's large model enables its R1 robot to deal with end-to-end planning of complex tasks. The company said its AI helps the R1 plan and execute jobs like preparing and serving a meal. It can in theory also learn new recipes and how to use different tools from woks to stoves. That's because its spatial perception system can recognize relationships between objects such as tables and appliances.

Bloomberg News hasn't independently verified Ant's claims. Partly out of safety concerns, Ant is still testing out its robot in places like community care centers and restaurants and not selling it to retail customers. The firm hasn't set a price yet. Over the longer term, the company is trying to develop companion and caregiver robots designed to enhance daily life, from medical assistance to household tasks.

Ant, which invested in Unitree and has been exploring AI in health-care for years, in June offered an AI app called AQ that analyses medical reports and provides doctor recommendations. The move followed Ant's decision to buy Chinese online health-care platform Haodf.com this year.