The Global Developer Pioneers Summit 2025 and the International Embodied Intelligence Competition in Shanghai tested robots' real-world implementation capabilities in various fields from industrial production to social services, home assistance, emergency rescue, medical care and artistic performances.

Different from previous industry conferences mainly featuring exhibitions and forums, the core highlight of this session from Friday to Sunday is to place humanoid robots in an arena of real-world scenarios. In addition to basic robot vendor exhibits, on-site skill competitions from over 100 embodied AI robot teams nationwide captured the attention of a wide audience.

The three-day conference features six major thematic tracks and eight scenario-based challenges, covering 19 specialized sub-events. These virtually encompass every possible scenario of robots integrating into human life.

Robots will play a crucial role in emergency rescue in the future. In an emergency rescue arena, 10 teams competed over three days, displaying their robots' ability to transport supplies in dangerous environments, navigating complex terrains, and climbing buildings.

"All the scenarios we've chosen are directly related to daily emergency rescue processes. For example, load capacity and time used serve as our scoring rules. The future of artificial intelligence is about helping us perform tasks under extreme conditions," said Zhang Lei, a judge of the emergency rescue arena.

In the industrial material handling arena, participating robots operated in a highly simulated unmanned workshop. This competition is not only about robots' handling efficiency, but also intelligent path planning, long-term operational stability, and ability to cope with sudden interference. A robot boasts a dual-arm load capacity of up to 30kg, and a long battery life.

"Typical factory material handling by hand involves 10-20 kilograms. Our goal is to help or replace people in doing this kind of work. Secondly, it can work continuously for eight hours after being charged for one hour," said Zhu Binbin, a contestant.

In the future, robots will have a wide range of applications in the service sector. Multiple competitions are underway to test robots' dexterity from food delivery, folding clothes, arranging flowers, to medical care.