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In August, the Chinese humanoid robot Tiangong Ultra bested Usain Bolt's 100 meter record. These robots still have serious (though sometimes pretty funny) flaws; this one crashed into a wall.
But make no mistake. As Pavlo Zvenyhorodskyi and I write in @ForeignAffairs, AI-powered robotics are going to change the physical world. China is investing substantially in these robots while the U.S. lags behind.
In the U.S., the top frontier AI companies are betting that they'll be able to automate just about everything humans can do on a computer in a few years. But that leaves a lot: everything that requires real-world interaction. Some people assume that rapid advances in software will easily diffuse into physical spaces. That's a big assumption to make given how important this technology might be.
China has invested in AI-powered robotics for several domestic reasons, including creating robotic caretakers. But robotics could just as well become a source of geopolitical advantage in supply chains and in the military. Many robotics companies in China are struggling to make a profit, but there's serious progress in the underlying technology. There significant parallels to China's playbook in EVs and solar.
Clearly, the U.S. needs to rapidly build up its robotics industry. But doing so will require a tough balancing act: decoupling is impractical given the deeply integrated nature of the supply chain. One of the key answers will involve working with allies and partners in Europe and Asia who have advantages in areas like industrial robotics as well as novel data sources, such as Ukraine's battlefield data.
But make no mistake. As Pavlo Zvenyhorodskyi and I write in @ForeignAffairs, AI-powered robotics are going to change the physical world. China is investing substantially in these robots while the U.S. lags behind.
In the U.S., the top frontier AI companies are betting that they'll be able to automate just about everything humans can do on a computer in a few years. But that leaves a lot: everything that requires real-world interaction. Some people assume that rapid advances in software will easily diffuse into physical spaces. That's a big assumption to make given how important this technology might be.
China has invested in AI-powered robotics for several domestic reasons, including creating robotic caretakers. But robotics could just as well become a source of geopolitical advantage in supply chains and in the military. Many robotics companies in China are struggling to make a profit, but there's serious progress in the underlying technology. There significant parallels to China's playbook in EVs and solar.
Clearly, the U.S. needs to rapidly build up its robotics industry. But doing so will require a tough balancing act: decoupling is impractical given the deeply integrated nature of the supply chain. One of the key answers will involve working with allies and partners in Europe and Asia who have advantages in areas like industrial robotics as well as novel data sources, such as Ukraine's battlefield data.
