China launches open-source initiative for "Tiangong" humanoid robot

The National and Local Co-built Embodied Artificial Intelligence Robotics Innovation Center on Monday launched the open-source initiative for "Tiangong", the world's first full-size purely electric-driven humanoid robot.

This decision is anticipated to promote the secondary development of humanoid robots and expedite their integration into everyday human life.

As a key platform driving breakthroughs in intelligent technology and industrial collaboration, the innovation center is currently accelerating advancements in the "Tiangong" humanoid robot, a domestically-developed platform. Additionally, it is focusing on the development of the whole-body collaborative intelligent cerebellum platform and the multifunctional intelligent body platform, "Kaiwu."

"Tiangong" boasts an average speed of 10 kilometers per hour and can reach a top speed of 12 kilometers per hour, setting a benchmark in its class. It is capable of navigating various terrains with ease, including slopes, stairs, grass, gravel, and sand.

Following the official launch of the open-source initiative for Tiangong, the innovation center will collaborate with universities, research institutes, integrators, and other organizations worldwide that possess secondary development capabilities in humanoid robotics. Together, they aim to create the most influential intelligent open-source community.

China launches open-source initiative for "Tiangong" humanoid robot

China's consumer goods industry maintained steady growth momentum in the first four months of 2026, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) said on Thursday.

In the first four months, value added in the consumer goods industry increased by 4.3 percent year on year, accounting for 27 percent of the total industrial value added by all industrial enterprises above designated size -- those with primary business revenue reaching 20 million yuan (around 3 million U.S. dollars).

During the period, consumer goods firms above the designated size achieved a total business revenue of about 10.3 trillion yuan (about 1.52 trillion U.S. dollars), an increase of 2.7 percent over the same period last year.

Additionally, these companies accounted for roughly 30 percent of employment, total profits and export delivery generated by all large-scale industrial enterprises in China.

So far, the country has a total of 230 million varieties of consumer goods. More than 100 categories, including home appliances, furniture, stationery items and sports accessories, clothing and home textiles, rank among the world's top in terms of production volume.

In addition, the supply of innovative products such as smart home devices, smart wearables, humanoid robots, and drones has been steadily increasing.

China's consumer goods industry maintains steady growth momentum in January-April