The 9th China Robotics Summit and Intelligent Robotics Industry Conference opened on September 17 in Hangzhou's Future Sci-Tech City, under the theme 'Intelligent New Ecosystem, Empowering All Scenarios — the Transformation and Leap of the Robot+ Era.'
For the first time the summit moved from its long-time home in Yuyao, Ningbo to Hangzhou, signaling the industry's gravitational pull toward the Yangtze River Delta's AI and robotics cluster. Some 500 experts and more than 2,000 industry representatives attended.
The program focused on embodied intelligence, humanoid robots and the fusion of large models with robotics. It launched the 'Elderly-Care Robot Collaborative Innovation Platform' under the China Industry-University-Research Promotion Association and an agent special contest, and released the '2026 China Embodied Intelligence Industry Going-Global Report' alongside a robotic embodied-intelligence capability evaluation framework.
Participants argued the robotics industry is accelerating toward scaled application, with 2026 increasingly described as the 'first year of humanoid-robot mass production.' The exhibition showcased the latest deployments in manufacturing, services and elderly care, emphasizing the 'robot+' industrialization path.
From technology showcase to industry matchmaking, the summit has become a barometer for embodied intelligence's journey from laboratory to market — and a venue where China's robot makers compare notes on turning prototypes into products at volume.
