China Has Started Deploying Humanoid Robots To Its Borders

China’s tech company UBTech Robotics has just secured a 264 million yuan (US$ 37 million) contract to deploy industrial-grade humanoid robots across border crossings in Guangxi, expanding the country’s push to apply robotics in public-facing and industrial environments. Deliveries are scheduled to begin in December.

The agreement was signed with a humanoid robot centre in Fangchenggang, a coastal city bordering Vietnam. The deployment will involve UBTech’s Walker S2, a model launched in July and described as the world’s first humanoid robot capable of autonomously replacing its own battery.

The initiative marks one of China’s largest real-world rollouts of humanoid systems in government operations. The details were first reported by the South China Morning Post (SCMP).

Simultaneously, the company issued a brief public announcement on social media alongside news of its inclusion in the MSCI China Index.

The pilot programme will deploy Walker S2 robots at border checkpoints to guide travellers, manage personnel flow, assist with patrol duties, handle logistics tasks, and support commercial services, the SCMP report said. In addition to immigration-related operations, the robots will also be used at manufacturing sites for steel, copper, and aluminium to conduct inspections.

The deal reflects an acceleration in China’s broader effort to commercialise embodied AI. The robotics sector has received strong policy backing, and agencies across multiple provinces have begun incorporating robots into routine work.

Similar deployments have also appeared in airports, government offices, and at major events. A China Central Television segment referenced by the SCMP reported that a related robot had been deployed at Hangzhou Xiaoshan International Airport to answer passenger questions.

During this year’s Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Summit in Tianjin, immigration authorities used a multilingual robot developed by Beijing-based iBen Intelligence. Police patrol robots have also been seen in cities such as Shenzhen, Shanghai, and Chengdu.