Chinese robotics startup Spirit AI expects humanoid robots to reach a major artificial intelligence breakthrough by mid-2027. The company believes robots could then understand natural-language instructions and perform a sequence of physical actions to complete general-purpose tasks.
Gao Yang, co-founder and chief scientist of Spirit AI, said, “The company expects to reach what he described as a GPT-3.0 milestone by mid-2027. The comparison refers to the impact GPT-3 had on generative AI and the wider adoption of ChatGPT.”
Spirit AI is building its robot intelligence using large amounts of real-world movement data. Around 1,000 contractors across China collect data while performing tasks in homes and factories.
Workers use sensors while opening refrigerators, unlocking safes and cutting vegetables. The company believes this approach can help robots learn how humans interact with different objects and environments.
Spirit AI said, “Robots have achieved a 90% success rate on simple tasks in structured living-room environments. However, the machines still face challenges with fine motor skills and unfamiliar situations.” The development marks a shift in the robotics industry. Chinese companies have already made rapid progress in robot hardware, including machines capable of running, dancing, and performing complex movements. The focus is on allowing robots to understand environments and execute useful tasks.
Spirit AI relies heavily on real-world data rather than virtual simulations. Gao said simulations work well for rigid objects but struggle with flexible items such as electrical cables.
Safety will also become increasingly important as robots move into unpredictable environments. Spirit AI uses whole-body force control that can trigger emergency braking when robots encounter excessive force.
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