BEIJING, Feb. 10, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- A report from People's Daily:

More than 300 robotics-related companies have gathered in Beijing's Yizhuang Economic-Technological Development Area (BDA), forming an industrial chain valued at over 10 billion yuan. Why has Yizhuang become such a magnet for robotics firms?

Two notable competitions held in 2025 provide clues. In April, the world's first humanoid robot half-marathon took place in Yizhuang. Then in November, the inaugural China International Robotics Debate Competition finals were hosted there. One event tested physical prowess ("martial"), the other intellectual capabilities ("civil").

Cai Jizheng, director of the Robotics and Intelligent Manufacturing Industry Bureau at BDA, framed these events less as competitions and more as scientific experiments and technical validations. He explained that humanoid robots integrate cutting-edge technologies like embodied intelligence, advanced manufacturing, and new materials. Their core development areas focus on the "brain" (perception, cognition, decision-making), the "cerebellum" (motion control), and the "body" (hardware structure). "We've adopted a strategy of hosting competitions almost every month," Cai said, "to drive technological progress and concentrate talent through competition."

While favorable policies are a primary draw for companies "voting with their feet," access to real-world application scenarios is even more critical. In August 2025, Yizhuang released the "Ten Measures for Embodied Intelligence Robots," offering substantial incentives such as 100 million yuan annually in "data vouchers," "prototyping vouchers" to reduce costs, and subsidies for humanoid robot sales. These hard-hitting measures cover the entire industrial chain, from data and R&D to scenarios and sales.

Earlier that year, in February 2025, a unique "job posting" was announced by the robot "Tian Gong": the "Beijing Yizhuang Nine Benchmark Robotics Application Scenarios Opportunity List." This initiative formally opened Yizhuang's urban resources, pledging to release opportunities for over 10,000 embodied intelligence robots worth nearly 5 billion yuan within two years, including more than 1,000 humanoid robots.

Director Cai emphasized that scenario access extends beyond the list. Using the Yizhuang New City as a testbed, BDA is implementing an embodied intelligence social experiment plan, allowing robots to learn in real-world environments. "We've already opened over 40 real-world settings like supermarkets, pharmacies, hotels, and warehouses," Cai noted, "generating millions of high-quality datasets for autonomous embodied intelligence."

Yizhuang's ecosystem is rapidly maturing. It hosts Beijing's sole "Human-like Robot Future Industry Incubation Base," the city's first "Robot Flexible Agile Manufacturing Platform," and the initial "Humanoid Robot Pilot Verification Platform." A 250,000-square-meter Beijing Robotics Industrial Park is under development, complemented by a 10-billion-yuan robotics industry fund. Efforts also include establishing embodied intelligence robot 4S stores. These platforms aim to aggregate essential resources and build a comprehensive ecosystem.

The area has essentially formed a complete industrial chain covering core components, whole-machine manufacturing, system integration, and scenario-based solutions. It has established a "1+6" industrial system centered on core components plus six types of robots: humanoid, industrial, specialized, medical, collaborative, and logistics robots.

Kong Lei, secretary of the BDA Working Committee, outlined ambitious goals: "We will continue to expand future industries like embodied intelligence." By the end of 2027, Yizhuang aims to create at least 10 benchmark intelligent scenario complexes, deploy 100 specialized AI models, and attract 1,000 core companies to its AI industrial chain.