According to a report by the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post on July 8, European companies are striving to establish themselves in the field of physical artificial intelligence. As China and the United States have taken the lead in this area, industry experts warn that if Europe cannot develop a competitive industrial system, it may face the risk of ‘de-industrialization’ again.
"You see that China and the United States... due to the development of AI, they are often considered leaders. But don’t underestimate Europe," said David Kehr, the head of the humanoid robot division under German industrial giant Schaeffer.
In January this year, Schaeffer entered the field of humanoid robots in collaboration with the British startup Humanoid. According to the agreement, Schaeffer will provide Humanoid with actuators—mechanical joints and motors that control the movement of robots. Schaeffer also plans to deploy the AI model of this British company at its own factory.
According to reports, on July 7 local time, Kier gave a speech at the first professional physics AI summit in Europe, MACHINA Summit, held in Paris, France. He pointed out that the main challenges faced by this industry include safety standards and the ability to train robots more quickly.
On July 7th local time, the MACHINA Summit was held in Paris, France. MACHINA Summit promotional materials
Kyle believes that Europe has the opportunity to play a leading role in setting global safety standards. However, he warns policymakers to find a balance. He points out that regulation should not be excessive, so as to not "stifle" the development of European humanoid robots and physical AI markets.
However, The South China Morning Post noted that on the main stage of the summit, the difficult challenges faced by European participants were quite evident. This was because most of the companies presenting at the event had headquarters in the United States, and European companies made up only a small portion of the speaker lineup. Important companies in the field of humanoid robots, including Yushu Technology and Zhiyuan, also demonstrated their strong capabilities at the exhibition.
Reports indicate that both at the summit and across the European continent, there is a sense of anxiety spreading. This anxiety stems from a concern: if Europe does not embrace the wave of physical AI in time, it may face another crisis of “deindustrialization”.
"If we do nothing, the country that will ultimately achieve leadership status will be China - China is currently at the forefront." Olivier Scalabre, CEO of Boston Consulting Group France, warned in a talk during an event held in France last week.
He estimates that if Europe cannot adapt to this change, its industrial output could face a threat of up to 40%.
The European Robotics Industry Organization euRobotics also issued a statement in June, calling for Europe to develop its own robotics development strategy to address a series of urgent challenges that can only be solved with advanced robotic systems.
At the exhibition site, several corporate executives stated that the importance of this competition is unprecedented.
"Robots are just a competition in the space race of our era." Jeff Cardenas, CEO of Apptronik, the U.S. robotics company developing human-like robots, stated that "in the next few decades, robots will become an indispensable part of every industry with their application scope continuously expanding."
