Nio is intensifying efforts to incorporate humanoid robots into its vehicle assembly plants, marking a significant step forward in automotive manufacturing innovation.
According to a report from China Star Market today, Nio, in collaboration with Huawei’s HarmonyOS, is conducting trials of Kuavo, the first humanoid robot equipped with the operating system, at its factories alongside Jiangsu Hengtong Group.
The initiative, featuring Huawei’s “Pangu large model + Kuavo humanoid robot,” aims to deploy these robots in both industrial and domestic settings simultaneously, the report noted.
Kuavo, developed by local robotics manufacturer Leju Robotics, was showcased at Huawei’s HDC 2024 developer conference on June 21, where Huawei Cloud CEO Zhang Pingan demonstrated its capabilities and potential applications.
Nio joins a select group of automakers exploring humanoid robotics for enhancing production processes. The company’s assembly facilities in Hefei, Anhui province, previously owned by Anhui Jianghuai Automobile Group and acquired by Nio last year, boast highly automated production lines.
Earlier this year, Hong Kong-listed UBTech Robotics showcased its Walker S robot in action at a Nio factory, illustrating its role in quality inspections and assembly tasks for new energy vehicles (NEVs).
Yi Peng, Nio’s head of humanoid robots for intellectual engineering, highlighted the company’s commitment to robotics integration, revealing plans for a humanoid robot “squad” during the China Humanoid Robot Ecology Conference 2024 in Shanghai.
