BEIJING, June 2 (Xinhua) -- China's booming humanoid robotics industry has not only become a key outcome of the government's innovation-driven development strategy, but has also sparked a new trend among Chinese youth: humanoid robot study tours.
For young learners across the country, such programs are rapidly emerging as a compelling new choice for extracurricular learning, shifting education from passive classrooms to hands-on exposure to real-world industrial technology.
STUDY TOURS IN ACTION
Beijing is at the forefront of this trend. On May 16, the Shijingshan District launched a technology study tour at its Humanoid Robot Data Training Center, integrating culture, tourism, technology, industry and creativity to create immersive educational experiences.
The training center, the country's largest of its kind, covering over 10,000 square meters and producing more than 6 million data samples annually, invites students to become "apprentice trainers," engaging in data collection and hands-on robot control.
Beyond the capital, other technology hubs are offering distinctive experiences. In Hangzhou, capital of east China's Zhejiang Province and also home to Unitree Robotics, a prominent robotics firm known for its humanoid and quadruped robots, students are exploring technology in creative settings.
The city's embodied robot exploration experience center at a local ocean park blends marine exhibits with over 300 advanced robots, allowing young learners to operate robot dogs, compete in robot soccer, and interact with AI companions.
In Shenzhen, the nation's innovation hub and base of EngineAI Robotics, a leader in full-stack humanoid robot development from joint design to core algorithms, study tours are reaching new depths.
The city's "Children's Eyes on Smart Manufacturing" initiative selects 80 cutting-edge industrial tour sites across AI, robotics and semiconductors.
A pioneering partnership between STEMHUB, a local innovative platform committed to the research and practice of cutting-edge STEM education, and EngineAI Robotics has introduced EngineAI's SA01 humanoid robot model into K-12 classrooms, with co-developed STEM courses that enable students to program and directly interact with humanoids.
CHINA'S HUMANOID ROBOT BOOM
These vibrant educational activities are not happening in a vacuum. They are the direct product of China's rapidly maturing humanoid robotics sector, an industry now scaling at breakneck speed.
According to the National Development and Reform Commission, the country's top economic planner, the embodied intelligence sector, exemplified by humanoid robots, is expanding at an annual rate of over 50 percent, and is projected to reach a market size of over 1 trillion yuan (about 146.66 billion U.S. dollars) by 2035.
Official data showed that by the end of 2025, China was home to more than 150 humanoid robot enterprises. The Chinese government has elevated embodied intelligence to a national strategic priority, with policies aimed at accelerating breakthroughs in core technologies and establishing industry standards.
STEM EDUCATION REFORM
Yet an industry powered by cutting-edge innovation cannot thrive without a workforce trained for the future, which has pushed science and technology education to the top of the national policy agenda.
In November 2025, the Ministry of Education and six other government departments issued a notice on strengthening science and technology education in primary and secondary schools, the first policy document to formally introduce the concept of science and technology education in China's basic education system.
The document clearly stated that strengthening science and technology education in primary and secondary schools is an important pathway to support the national innovation-driven development strategy and cultivate future scientific and technological innovation talent.
It also set out clear targets: by 2030, China aims to establish a comprehensive science and technology education system. By 2035, a full-fledged science and technology education ecosystem will take shape, with social resource support systems constantly improved and project-based, inquiry-based and interdisciplinary learning widely adopted.
With the government encouraging social resources to support project-based learning and the private sector investing heavily in robotics, these humanoid robot study tours are well-positioned to become a signature offering in China's youth education landscape.
In Shanghai, youngsters from a local science and technology interest group visited the city's humanoid robot innovation incubator center in early May.
There, they shook hands with humanoids, played "rock-paper-scissors" against robotic hands, completed visual-following challenges, and watched intelligent robot dogs sprint and respond to commands outdoors.
For fifth-grader Zhang Zhenkun, a humanoid robot study tour brought what he had only seen on television to life.
After shaking hands with a Unitree humanoid robot, the very model that had strutted down the runway at Shanghai Fashion Week weeks earlier, Zhang could barely contain his excitement.
"This robot is really advanced. Its design is both close to everyday life and goes beyond it," said Zhang. "I'm definitely going to share this with my friends tomorrow." ■
