Japan’s Robotics Legacy Falters as China
and the US Surge Ahead in AI-Powered Humanoids
Japan’s university system has long
centred on engineering faculties led by manufacturing, resulting in a relative
shortage of AI talent
Despite
being a global pioneer in robotics, Japan has struggled to capitalise on the
current boom in AI-driven humanoid robots, leaving most of its robots
confined to factory floors while companies in China and the United States
push ahead with versatile, learning-enabled humanoids.
At the 26th
International Robot Exhibition (IREX) in Tokyo, Japan’s major robotics
firms such as Kawasaki, Fanuc and Yaskawa showcased their continued dominance
in industrial robotics, highlighting strengths in precision
manufacturing and factory automation. However, the most attention-grabbing
humanoid robots largely came from young Chinese start-ups, reflecting
China’s rapid advance in combining robotics with artificial intelligence.
Japan’s
early leadership — from Waseda University’s
WABOT robots in the 1970s to Honda’s ASIMO and SoftBank’s Pepper
— failed to translate into sustainable commercial success. Many flagship
humanoid projects were discontinued due to weak demand and limited real-world
utility, fostering scepticism toward humanoids in Japan.
Analysts
attribute Japan’s lag to a shortage of AI talent, rooted in a university
system historically focused on manufacturing engineering, and to the inertia
created by success in traditional industrial robotics. In contrast, China has
benefited from state-led industrial policy, a deep AI talent pool, a
vast domestic market for real-world testing, and aggressive scaling —
installing over half of the world’s industrial robots by 2024.
While
Japan retains a crucial role in global robotics supply chains and is seeking
revival through initiatives like the Kyoto Humanoid Association and new
“Physical AI” collaborations, it now faces the challenge of catching up in an
era where software intelligence, learning capability and commercial
viability define the future of humanoid robotics.
While
humanoid robots from China and the US have captured the imagination of people
for their skill at serving drinks, taking part in boxing matches and running
marathons, and entertaining through dance moves on stage, their counterparts in
Japan – the long-time leader of the robotics world – are mostly confined to
factories.
Japan’s
early forays into humanoids date back to the 1960s, so what happened along the
way?
At
the 26th International Robot Exhibition (IREX), a four-day, biennial industry
showcase held early December at Tokyo Big Sight, Japan’s domestic industrial
robotics heavyweights – including Kawasaki, Fanuc, Yaskawa and Nachi – still
dominated, occupying the largest booths. Massive robotic arms could be seen
swinging around with precision, simulating welding, assembly and material
handling tasks in real-world factory operations.
That
focus “highlights Japan’s ongoing emphasis on mature industrial applications,
where integration, deployment and return on investment are well understood”,
said industry research firm TrendForce in a recent
note.
The
event drew a record 673 exhibitors, including 140 companies from 13 countries
and regions. Participation from China also hit an all-time high, with 84
exhibitors, despite the backdrop of an ongoing diplomatic row between Tokyo and
Beijing.
Still,
humanoids were the most eye-catching at the show, many of which came from
relatively young Chinese start-ups seeking to present their products in an
international setting. These included Galbot, AgiBot and Robotera – all founded
in 2023 – as well as the more recently established Lumos. At the booth of
Chinese robotics star Unitree, hosted by its Japanese distributor Techshare, robots boxed and danced in front of packed
crowds.
Unitree’s
130cm-tall humanoids made an appearance at other booths, used as training
platforms by various software and solutions providers. GMO, a Japanese internet
conglomerate that has in recent years branched into robotics, set up a small
bar where Unitree robots served drinks. Japanese start-up Tron also showcased
several Chinese-made robots, showing how they could perform tasks inside
factories.
“Unitree’s
robot bodies are well built and easy to adapt for secondary development,” said
Johnny Chen, chairman of Solomon Technology, a Taiwan-based industrial AI and
machine-vision specialist.
Beyond
the humanoids, a slew of suppliers from China’s robotics supply chain were also
present, including electric drive component maker Leaddrive,
lidar and mobile chassis system provider Slamtec,
laser component firm Lanhai Photoelectricity and
D-Robotics, which provides chips and software platforms.
“Industrial
robots are Japan’s traditional stronghold,” said Tang Jin, a senior principal
researcher at Mizuho Bank. “China is competing in new technologies and new
tracks – areas without clear ceilings and not yet dominated by entrenched
players.”
In
the early 1970s, Waseda University unveiled WABOT-1,
widely regarded as the world’s first full-scale humanoid robot, capable of
walking, talking and gripping objects. Its successor, WABOT-2, introduced in
the 1980s, could even play a keyboard.
Auto
giant Honda began its humanoid research programme in the same decade and, after
years of iteration, introduced ASIMO in 2000 – which at the time became the
world’s most recognisable humanoid robot. The astronaut-like, bipedal machine
even played football with then US president Barack Obama during his visit to
Tokyo in 2014. Honda ended the development of ASIMO in 2018 after failing to
make money from the effort.
Pepper,
SoftBank Group’s wheeled, semi-humanoid unveiled in 2014, became a symbol of
Japan’s early faith in emotionally interactive robots, but production was
halted in 2021 amid weak demand.
In
December, Yaskawa Electric and SoftBank announced a collaboration on “Physical
AI”, which aims to “realise a future in which robots can perform their
abilities in more diverse environments”.
SoftBank
also owned US robotics company Boston Dynamics between 2017 and 2021.
Several
of Japan’s high-profile humanoid projects have since come to an end, leaving
the country with a less positive attitude towards the recent humanoid boom that
has been hyped up in the US and China, said Takaaki Shigemitsu, president of Techshare.
“Humanoids
in Japan were already dancing 35 years ago,” he said. “But they didn’t
contribute to industrial work, only entertainment. Public interest … eventually
disappeared.”
However,
the key difference with the current humanoid robotics boom is the “brain”,
powered by artificial intelligence. Unlike earlier generations of robots built
around preprogrammed actions, today’s humanoids are expected to self-learn and
develop more generalised capabilities.
“China’s
digital economy has crossed a qualitative threshold,” said Tang of Mizhuo Bank, citing strengths in software development, a
deep AI talent pool and a vast domestic market that offers abundant real-world
training scenarios.
In
contrast, Japan’s university system has long centred on engineering faculties
led by manufacturing, resulting in a relative shortage of AI talent. Japanese
companies remain highly competitive in traditional robotics, accounting for 38
per cent of global production according to the International Federation of
Robotics (IFR), but that success has made strategic pivots more difficult.
China’s
manufacturing sector, meanwhile, has experienced rapid growth. Made in China
2025, a state-led, 10-year industrial policy blueprint unveiled in 2015, set
out Beijing’s ambitions to build a “manufacturing powerhouse”, citing robotics
and related supply chains as strategic priorities, with a focus on industrial
and service robots.
By
2024, China had installed 295,000 industrial robots, representing 54 per cent
of global demand, while domestic suppliers for the first time surpassed foreign
rivals, capturing 57 per cent of the local market, IFR data showed.
“China’s
nationwide industry policy is very effective at scaling up,” Tang said, citing
solar power and electric vehicles as precedents. “Competition is then allowed
to play out, and the strongest players emerge.”
That
approach is now being applied to humanoid robotics, backed by national and
local policy support as well as rising private sector investment.
At
IREX, the interdependence of the Chinese and Japanese robotics industries was
still evident. Robotic arms from Japan are widely used in Chinese factories,
often paired with Chinese-made 3D cameras, while Japanese precision components
are embedded in Chinese humanoid robots. Many Japanese manufacturers also
continue to operate production facilities in China.
“We’re
here to visit Japanese clients and explore new business-development
opportunities,” said Yvonne Yuan, overseas branding head at Beijing-based Galbot, which is also working with Chinese carmakers to
test robots in factory settings. The company was among a growing number of
Chinese firms attending IREX for the first time.
Some
delegations from provincial Chinese governments that had planned to attend the
event to court investment were unable to travel amid geopolitical tensions, the
Post learned on site.
In
2015, building on its industrial robotics strength, Japan went a step further
by launching a “new robot strategy” to expand robotics into healthcare,
infrastructure, agriculture and everyday life, partly to address labour
shortages and rapid ageing.
Adoption,
however, fell short of the plan’s goals, constrained by high costs and limited
technological capability.
Now
the country that once dominated robotics is trying to catch up amid the
AI-driven shift. The Kyoto Humanoid Association, established in August, aims to
revitalise the country’s humanoid robotics industry by bringing together
manufacturers and academia.
At
IREX, Kawasaki showcased the latest version of its humanoid robot Kaleido, demonstrating the 191cm-tall biped’s ability to
take out rubbish and assist in house-fire rescue scenarios via virtual
reality-based remote control.
Ultimately,
everything comes back to the same question: are robots useful? Chinese humanoid
developers are now under pressure to prove real-world value, with companies
such as Shenzhen-based UBTech highlighting confirmed
orders and mass-production plans.
Scepticism
remains. TrendForce said China’s main challenge in
2026 would be balancing mass-market affordability with high-end differentiation
while building ecosystems that support data and applications.
In
a December research note Morgan Stanley was similarly cautious, saying that
while many companies had set aggressive targets for 2026, near-term hurdles
remained. “The industry will need to wait for verification of commercialisation
before realising its long-term potential,” the bank said.