Xiaomi Plans to Bring Humanoid Robots to Its Factories Within Five Years - CEO Lei Jun

Xiaomi is preparing for a major transformation in the way its factories operate, and according to CEO Lei Jun, that shift is coming much sooner than many might expect. Speaking with an English daily in China, Lei said the rapid evolution of artificial intelligence is reshaping traditional industries and setting the stage for machines that look and function like humans to take on tasks that previously required manual labour. As reported by ITHome, he believes AI has moved firmly from a supportive role to becoming the very foundation of tomorrow’s factory systems.

To illustrate how quickly this transition is taking place, Lei pointed to Xiaomi’s electric vehicle production facility. One of the plant’s more complex tasks involves inspecting large die-cast components—work that once depended entirely on human expertise and could be both time-consuming and prone to errors. Xiaomi has now introduced an inspection system that pairs X-ray scanning with a vision-based AI model. According to Lei, this new setup completes assessments in just a few seconds, making it ten times faster and significantly more accurate than manual inspection. He described it as a “simple preview” of what a completely AI-driven production workflow could eventually look like.

Lei believes these advancements signal a massive opportunity for companies investing in automation technologies, predicting that the market could eventually grow to be worth a trillion yuan. However, he emphasized that such a transformation cannot be driven by a single company. The next stage of AI integration, he said, will require shared platforms and collaborative partnerships that support different layers of the broader industrial ecosystem.

One of the most significant elements of Xiaomi’s vision is the introduction of humanoid robots. Lei revealed that the company plans to deploy these robots across its manufacturing lines within the next five years, assigning them physical tasks currently handled by workers on assembly floors. “And this is only the first step,” he added. Beyond factory environments, he believes that demand for humanoid robots in households could grow even larger. Home robots, he noted, will require higher levels of adaptability, performance, and intelligence to operate in more complex, unpredictable environments.

Lei also touched on China’s larger role in the shift toward smart manufacturing. He warned that the long-standing reliance on inexpensive labour is no longer a sustainable path for the country’s industrial growth. Instead, he urged China’s manufacturing sector to accelerate its move toward intelligent, automated systems if it hopes to remain competitive in the global technological landscape.

Xiaomi itself has been moving steadily toward this future. In 2022, the company unveiled CyberOne, its first humanoid robot, as a demonstration of its robotics and AI capabilities. Since then, Xiaomi has expanded its work in automation, machine intelligence, and electric vehicles—positioning itself as a serious contender in the race to build the factories of the future.