Humanoid robots will enter Xiaomi factories at scale within five years, says Lei Jun

Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun believes that artificial intelligence will reshape traditional industries over the next five years and says humanoid robots will soon play a central role in that transformation. In an interview with Beijing Daily, Lei said AI is no longer a peripheral tool, but a core driver for rebuilding the industrial landscape across sectors.

Humanoid Robots Will Soon Outnumber Workers

Lei cited Xiaomi’s EV factory as an early example of how AI can deliver massive efficiency gains. Inspecting large die-cast components manually is slow and error-prone. But an X-ray system integrated with a vision AI model now performs the task in two seconds, offering ten times the speed and more than five times the accuracy of a human worker. Lei described this as a glimpse of what’s possible when AI is deeply embedded into core manufacturing processes.

He said this level of automation and precision could unlock a new trillion-yuan ($140 billion) industrial market, but emphasized that no company can build the entire pipeline alone. Partnerships and collaborative ecosystems will be critical for scaling AI across industries.

Looking ahead, Lei said Xiaomi will deploy humanoid robots across its factories on a large scale within five years. These robots will be able to take over tasks currently handled by humans on the assembly line. “And this is only the first step,” Lei said. He expects the home market for humanoid robots to be even bigger, with higher complexity and stricter performance demands.

Lei also highlighted China’s role in smart manufacturing and warned against following the outdated model of relying on cheap labor. He called on the capital city’s manufacturing sector to lead with intelligent production methods and capture the high ground in the race for industrial upgrading.

The company has already made strides in robotics. Its CyberOne humanoid robot debuted in 2022 as a proof of concept. Since then, Xiaomi has quietly expanded its AI and robotics research as part of its broader push into smart electric vehicles and advanced automation.

Xiaomi’s vision aligns with broader trends in China’s manufacturing upgrade roadmap, where AI, robotics, and smart factories are expected to play a central role in driving long-term competitiveness.

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(Via)