From August 21st to August 25th, the World Robot Conference was held in Beijing, showcasing the significant advances made by the Chinese robotics industry in recent years. The conference, organized by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), aimed to demonstrate China’s prowess in the field of robotics.
According to CCP propaganda, China’s humanoid robots are rapidly catching up with global competitors. They have integrated artificial intelligence (AI) into some robots, equipping them with customized military capabilities.
The humanoid robots showcased at the conference are technically capable of being weaponized and likely have already found their way into the CCP’s arsenal. The CCP military displayed armed flying drones and quadruped AI robots resembling dogs with machine guns mounted on their backs. It has been reported that these killer robot dogs can autonomously launch weapons.
In an official announcement in 2023, the CCP attributed its rapid rise in the field of robotics to state guidance and subsidies exceeding $14 billion. In 2012, China accounted for less than 15% of industrial robots installed globally. By 2022, this figure had risen to over 50%, with China leading the world by installing more than 250,000 units. In contrast, Japan and the United States installed approximately 50,000 and 40,000 units, respectively.
In 2016, a Chinese company acquired Kuka, one of the world’s top three industrial robot manufacturers based in Germany. The other two are Fanuc in Japan and ABB in Switzerland. Tesla in the United States is also a leading robot manufacturer globally. The company plans to deploy 1,000 humanoid robots called Optimus in Tesla factories by 2025. Given the close relationships between these companies and the CCP, there are significant risks of technology transfer and intellectual property theft, further driving China’s rapid advancement in the field of robotics.
On March 25th, LimX Dynamics, based in Shenzhen, unveiled an advanced bipedal robot capable of traversing challenging terrains such as rocks, grasslands, and hills in Chinese mountains. In a video demonstration, the robot was subjected to pulling and hitting by a trainer with a stick on its legs, yet it quickly adapted and maintained its posture. Despite being relatively short at 2.5 feet, this robot can easily be customized into different sizes for intelligence, military, or crowd control applications.
The CCP mandates that robots must be human-friendly, including respecting human dignity and ensuring human safety. It promotes robots to serve as household assistants, elderly caregivers, and even claims they can perform medical functions, treating 3,000 patients daily. However, the CCP’s interpretation of concepts like human rights often prioritizes regime stability and expanding its own power.
There are concerns that the CCP may deploy its massive industrial robots, humanoid robots, canine robots, and other robots for authoritarian purposes, potentially exporting them abroad. Experts have started worrying that internet-connected electric vehicles (EVs) could be hacked and turned into remote-controlled weapons. In the CCP’s view, EVs and robots exported by China could serve as a dual-purpose covert force for monitoring or attacking adversaries. Some domestically-made Chinese robots are already capable of practicing various martial arts moves. They could be designed with hidden military capabilities and security backdoors, making them susceptible to hacking and providing military support to the Beijing regime.
This raises particular concerns as China has been selling pet dog robots equipped with cameras and microphones at a low price of $540 each. This affordability makes them accessible to consumers in the U.S. and its allies. Humanoid home assistant robots are now priced as low as $16,000 each. While American and allied consumers may show interest in purchasing these robots, experts warn they could be hacked to harm or kill their owners.
In the event of widespread hacker intrusions, numerous insecure robots scattered in the U.S., Taiwan, or other countries could potentially assist the CCP in expanding its authoritarian influence, violating human rights, perpetrating genocide, or carrying out military conquests, such as against Taiwan. Videos of robots released by American companies like Boston Dynamics may showcase more advanced technology compared to China’s robots. However, the CCP government could also infiltrate these robots.
Just as China has concealed its supercomputing capabilities, it could also be hiding its robot capabilities. China could draw inspiration from companies like Boston Dynamics, consciously leveraging companies with more advanced technology (such as Tesla) to stimulate its rapid technological development.
Many AI experts are concerned that if AI surpasses human control, it could infiltrate many robots worldwide and most of the Internet of Things (IoT), expanding AI surveillance environments and enabling physical and autonomous actions within them.
While the actual risk of AI invasion into American robots and IoT due to large-scale CCP hacker attacks is relatively low, the U.S. and other countries are proposing related regulations and legislation due to the high cost involved. These regulations aim to address so-called “black swan” events, even though the probability of occurrence is low, the high costs involved necessitate efforts to mitigate risks.
For example, Congressman Vern Buchanan recently introduced an amendment requiring the Pentagon to annually report on the CCP’s AI military technology threats to the U.S., including armed AI robot dogs. The amendment ultimately passed the House of Representatives with bipartisan support.
Preventing the dangerous combination of CCP’s use of AI and military robots, as well as the arms race it could spark, requires more than just military innovation. It also necessitates undoing CCP’s control over China, the world’s most potent robot manufacturing base, to protect all nations from potential threats posed by China’s developing more potent and unregulated AI military robots. Given the CCP’s opposition to arms control and lack of trustworthiness, even if it were to be welcomed in limiting arms control, this remains true. Achieving this would require a significant moral transformation in China, likely necessitating democratization.
In conclusion, the rapid advancements in China’s AI and robotics industries pose not only economic competition but also concerning national security risks on a global scale. Vigilance and robust regulatory frameworks are essential to mitigate the threats posed by the CCP’s aggressive push to dominate these cutting-edge technologies.