SAIC-GM has deployed humanoid robots on a Buick battery production line, marking an early example of embodied intelligent robots being integrated into real-world automotive manufacturing in China.
The robot, named “Nengzai No. 1,” is currently operating on the production line for the Buick Electra E7. Unlike traditional humanoid robots, the system uses a wheeled chassis and has been designed to perform key tasks such as battery cell handling and loading.
The robot was jointly developed with Agibot and is equipped with visual perception capabilities and dual-arm coordination. According to SAIC-GM, it can autonomously identify materials and plan grasping actions without relying on fixed programming, enabling more flexible operation on the production line.
The company said the robot achieves positioning accuracy of within ±0.1 millimeters and operates at a cycle time of about two seconds per unit, meeting the speed requirements of mass production. It also occupies less than 15% of the space of a conventional automated workstation, improving factory space efficiency.
Agibot, backed by SAIC’s investment platform, worked with the automaker to test the robot across more than 100 workstations before selecting the battery production line as the first deployment scenario.
SAIC-GM said it plans to expand the use of such robots across additional production and logistics processes. In parallel, the company is also piloting bipedal humanoid robots for future applications.
The development reflects broader efforts by automakers in China to adopt advanced robotics and artificial intelligence technologies to improve efficiency and flexibility in manufacturing.
The Electra E7, which the robots help produce, is a mid-size plug-in hybrid SUV built on SAIC’s Xiao Yao platform and is equipped with an assisted driving system developed by Momenta.