Five Russian robots have left their homeland to go and work in China as a group of pioneers who will soon be joined by more than 100 of their compatriots.
The robots were made by Promobot, a resident company of the Skolkovo Foundation’s IT cluster, which produces chatty robots designed to talk to customers and provide them with useful information – as well as entertain and charm them – at busy public places such as shopping malls, stations and cinemas.
A Promobot on display at the International Robot Exhibition in Japan last year. Photo: MTI.
Promobot signed a contract for the delivery of five robots to the Chinese company Keysi Microelectronics, based in Hangzhou, at the International Robot Exhibition in Ariake, Japan, last year. Later, contracts were signed for the delivery of four more robots this year, and another 100 by the end of 2017.
Before starting their new lives, the first group of robots was given a crash course in Chinese: members of the Promobot team spent two weeks in China with the robots, working with specialists from a partner company there. The robots now understand and speak basic Chinese, and will continue to work on their language skills and vocabulary with the help of Promobot’s Chinese colleagues.
“Our robot has really caused a sensation on the Chinese market,” said Alexei Yuzhakov, co-founder of Promobot. “It’s really interesting to watch these serious Chinese businessmen interacting with our robots, smiling at them and shaking hands with them.
“Thanks to our partners, we’ll be able to distribute our Promobots all around China: in banks, cinemas, shopping centres and other places where they are needed to improve customer service,” he added.