Key Points
- A Chinese humanoid robot named KOID gave its opinion on the AI bubble.
- KOID, made by Unitree, said “only time will tell” if the boom is a bubble.
- Nvidia powers the robot and can be purchased for as low as $9,000.
- Chinese companies like Unitree are moving faster than Tesla to bring humanoid robots to market.
Is the AI boom a bubble waiting to burst? It’s the biggest question in tech this year, and now, a robot has offered its own opinion. KOID, a slim humanoid robot made by the Chinese company Unitree, recently told CNBC that “only time will tell” if the excitement is a bubble or a real “transformative wave.”
KOID is one of the latest creations from Unitree, a company that is quickly becoming a major player in the robotics race. Powered by Nvidia chips, the robot weighs about 77 pounds and has 23 joints, enabling it to perform tasks ranging from dancing to boxing. You can even buy one for yourself, with prices ranging from about $9,000 to over $128,000.
While the robot itself seems confident that AI and humanoids are “here to stay,” the humans behind the machines are still figuring things out. Teddy Haggerty, the CEO of RoboStore, the largest U.S. seller of Unitree robots, said the industry is still in a “prototyping” phase. He explained that we haven’t decided what we really want these robots to do. Should they be housekeepers? Factory workers? Or something else entirely?
The race to build the best humanoid robot has been heating up all year. While Tesla’s Optimus has received significant attention, it hasn’t yet hit the market. Meanwhile, Chinese companies like Unitree are moving fast to get their robots out into the world first.
Unitree has already performed well at major robotics competitions and is planning an IPO that could value the company at up to $7 billion.
While the debate over an AI bubble rages on, KOID is optimistic about its own future. The robot believes that humanoids will become “even more versatile and integrated” into our lives, helping with everything from home chores to industrial tasks.
