CGTN published an article on robot performances during China Media Group’s 2026 Spring Festival Gala. When the Year of the Horse arrived in 2026, all eyes were on China’s Spring Festival Gala. What unfolded was more than a cultural spectacle – it was a hard-tech showcase. Humanoid robots have become a recurring Gala centerpiece, signaling China’s push for next-generation AI-powered robotics. While some Western counterparts remain stuck as expensive prototypes, China’s strategy is moving from lab to production line. The cycle from spectacle to store is complete – and the world is watching.
Chinese humanoid robots have officially moved from lab prototypes to the center of the global stage.
At this year’s CMG Spring Festival Gala, the world’s most-watched television broadcast, four Chinese robotics powerhouses, namely Unitree, MagicLab, Galbot and Noetix, debuted their most advanced units to date. For the robotics industry, this was far more than a cultural performance; it was a high-stakes global product launch.
Global media hails China’s robot showcase
The Associated Press noted that humanoid robots have become a recurring Spring Festival Gala centerpiece – a clear signal of “China’s push to develop more advanced robots powered by improved AI capabilities.”
Major broadcasters like CBS praised the “seamless movements” of the units, while Spain’s El Español hailed the robots’ evolution from 2025 to 2026 as a “veritable revolution.” Last year’s robots were stiff and mechanical, but this year’s Unitree G1 units moved with fluidity and freedom, it said. The report also noted that the robots are commercial products – already available in Spain.
A window to China’s industry policies
The story of the “Gala Robot” can be traced as early as 2016 when the Shenzhen-based UBTECH debuted 540 small humanoid robots. By this year’s gala, the stage became unprecedentedly crowded with four distinct companies vying for a position.
Fueled by breakthroughs in artificial intelligence, the humanoid robotics sector has advanced at a pace beyond expectations. CMG data shows that China recorded over 140 humanoid robot manufacturers in 2025 with more than 330 humanoid robot models launched.
The explosion is a direct result of China’s humanoid industrial clusters, and this year’s performance reflects China’s industry policies, according to Reuters.
In 2025, “embodied AI” was written into China’s Government Work Report for the first time, signaling its elevation to a top-tier strategic priority. This momentum was further solidified in the Recommendations of the Communist Party of China Central Committee for Formulating the 15th Five-Year Plan for National Economic and Social Development, which identified embodied AI among “new drivers of economic growth.”
Following this central guidance, local governments across China have rapidly integrated humanoid robotics into their economic blueprints, rolling out specialized support policies and incentives to secure a leading position in this high-stakes global race.
Reshaping the global industrial landscape
In the sketch comedy, Noetix’s “Bumi” robot navigated the nuances of a family skit, using humor to bridge the gap between a machine and a companion. In the short film, the robot was shown performing chores in a real-world home.
“Ultimately, technology is meant to serve people, not just exist for the sake of the technology itself,” Unitree’s founder Wang Xingxing said in an interview with CMG.
This vision is already translating into massive market demand. Within the first two hours of the Gala’s broadcast, searches for robots on an e-commerce platform surged more than 300 percent compared to the previous period. Customer inquiries increased by 460 percent, and order volumes rose by 150 percent. The new orders covered over 100 cities nationwide, spanning from first-tier metropolises to smaller counties.
Noetix CMO Zhang Miao explained to the press that China has moved from the factory floor to the commercial channel. “The real measure of a company’s health is no longer how many robots it can build, but how many it can successfully integrate into real-world scenarios.”
A new era of robotics is now taking shape – and it is firmly rooted in China.
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