Hong Kong/Hangzhou/Beijing —
When humanoid robots dominated the stage of last year’s Spring Festival Gala with sleek dance routines, Ai Lin saw more than a spectacle. He saw a business.
Soon after, the e-commerce livestreamer in Hangzhou shelled out $30,000 for his first android and turned it into a rental venture.
Business has been brisk. For 3,000 yuan ($443) a day, customers can hire an android to attract crowds at exhibitions, perform at events or even help stage a marriage proposal.
But his venture has also revealed what viral videos of dancing, flipping Chinese robots have not: the heavily promoted technology is still years away from replacing human labor, whether on a factory floor or in a household.
