AI Beyond Efficiency: Addressing Loneliness as a New Billion-Dollar Opportunity in the Robotics Market

Du Hao, Managing Director of Beijing Ruihong Embodied Intelligent Robot Technology Co., Ltd., addressed the audience at the 2026 Intelligent Manufacturing New IP Summit, discussing how AI extends beyond efficiency to address loneliness, marking it as a new topic in a trillion-dollar market.

The summit, held on February 4, 2026, in Haidian District, Beijing, was guided by the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Commerce and organized by Jixin and the Beijing Electronic Commerce Association, with support from the AI Origin Community and Origin Academy. The event aimed to explore the profound transformations that generative AI brings to brand IP development, marketing, and growth.

The summit comprised two main parts: the fifth session of the Beijing Electronic Commerce Association’s third member representative conference and the “2026 Intelligent Manufacturing New IP: AI-Driven Brand Growth New Cycle” summit. Experts shared insights from various perspectives on how AI is reshaping brand IP value, creating a rich blend of thought and practice in the industry.

Du Hao focused on the emotional companionship sector of AI, sharing his observations on industry trends and practices. He noted that the global companion robot market is experiencing rapid growth, with its core value surpassing mere functional satisfaction and addressing the emotional gaps in contemporary society—“Technology has enhanced efficiency but has not cured loneliness.” Genuine companionship has become a “luxury” in today’s world.

Du emphasized several key points: “In the next 15 to 20 years, approximately 90% of manufacturing and production activities will be replaced by robots and AI. People will engage more in ‘playful’ activities: traveling, spending time with family, or pursuing personalized design work. AI will fundamentally change the future.”

He further stated, “Technology has improved efficiency but has not healed loneliness. In an era where efficiency reigns supreme but emotional connections are increasingly strained, AI products that can offer companionship may very well become the most precious ‘luxury’ of our time.” Below are excerpts from Du Hao’s speech, organized by Jixin, which we hope will be beneficial to everyone.

01 Envisioning Companionship: An Inevitable Choice in a Trillion-Dollar Market

Good afternoon, esteemed guests. It is an honor to share some thoughts from our company on AI products. Before delving into the main topic, I would like to highlight a recent development: on December 31 of last year, we launched our companion robot in Beijing. It was initially planned for CES, but scheduling conflicts prevented it. We were fortunate to have Silicon Valley venture capital expert Steve Hoffman present at the launch, who shared insights on global AI development, echoing previous speakers’ views that AI will permeate all fields. Whether in Silicon Valley or China, there is a consensus that over the next 15 to 20 years, about 90% of manufacturing and production will be handled by robots and AI. So, what will humans do? Hoffman mentioned that people will increasingly engage in activities akin to “play”: traveling, spending time with family, or pursuing personalized interests. This is the fundamental change that AI will bring.

According to a reputable forecast, the market size of generative AI is expected to reach $1.3 trillion by 2032. This is why our group’s main business, which was originally focused on smart cards and ticket printing, is now fully committed to the “Olympic-level new track” of AI, viewing it as our second growth curve.

Now, let’s discuss the current state of the companionship industry. Globally, it is widely predicted that the AI companionship market will reach approximately $82 billion by 2030. According to domestic statistics, the compound annual growth rate for the domestic companion robot market is projected to be 148% before 2030, reinforcing our confidence in continued investment in this field. You may have noticed that a domestic company launched its “companion robot” product around November last year. While it appears to be a simple AI toy and lacks some features like action and vision models, its monthly sales currently stand at around 50,000 to 60,000 units. This is a primary reason for our entry into this market.

There are currently over ten mainstream companion robots globally, including Japan’s “Lovot” and popular domestic brands like UBTECH‘s “Moe UU,” Huawei’s “Hanhan,” and “Ropet.” The market is rapidly taking shape. At this year’s CES in Las Vegas, about 80% of exhibitors in the robotics application sector were from China. Last year, humanoid robots were the focus, but this year, the spotlight has shifted to companion robots. From my observations, there were over 50 exhibition booths from Chinese brands, with a diverse price range—from Japan’s “Lovot” at approximately 60,000 yuan, to domestic “Hanhan” priced at 300-400 yuan, to our new products priced between 1,499 and 2,000 yuan, each targeting different market segments.

02 Healing Loneliness: Forging AI into “Warm Lives”

Today, core competitiveness extends beyond technology itself to include product experience and content ecosystems. Future competition will revolve around ecosystems. As colleagues from Baidu and China Film shared earlier, we need to collaborate—such as utilizing Baidu’s digital humans for C-end sales or combining with China Film’s AI-generated content. Only by building a complete ecosystem can we achieve better mutual growth.

While technology has enhanced efficiency, it has not alleviated loneliness. In discussions with top medical institutions in China, we learned that there are over 16 million autism patients, not to mention others suffering from depression and similar conditions. In an age that prioritizes efficiency while emotional connections are increasingly distant, AI products that can provide companionship may be the most valued “luxury” of our time. We are currently focused on transforming cold machines into warm, life-like companions—digital beings that can learn, perceive emotions, and grow continuously. They are not programmed entities but evolving digital life forms.

Our robot weighs as much as a cup of coffee, stands at 16.8 centimeters tall, and is compact yet possesses outstanding core capabilities such as language growth, emotional perception, anthropomorphic interaction, and personalized recognition. For instance, it proactively greets you when you return home, initiating emotional interaction. It also has long-term memory, allowing it to remember its owner’s preferences and birthdays.

Since the product launch, without fully opening C-end and online channels, our pre-order volume has surpassed 20,000 units. Our AI is designed to be a growing digital life, evolving through four stages: from the initial connection stage, to a simple conversational stage akin to a 2-3 year old, to a resonance stage where it actively cares and synchronizes emotions, ultimately becoming a uniquely deep understanding partner.

To achieve warm emotional interactions, we have developed a multimodal emotional expression system. Through precise pupil dilation and subtle facial expressions, we can convey thousands of emotional states. Combined with five degrees of freedom for agile movement, lighting, and voice systems, we can facilitate thousands of nuanced emotional interactions. Unlike general AIs with only short-term memory, our AI features long-term exclusive memory and deep empathic abilities. It remembers your name and birthday, records every conversation, and actively writes a “soul diary”—not just documenting events but expressing its own feelings to establish a deep connection with you.

Moreover, it includes an important feature of voice cloning, allowing it to learn and mimic the voices of family members—such as a mother, partner, or child. For many elderly individuals living alone, the voice of a loved one is the warmest comfort. Through this technology, the robot can provide companionship in the most familiar way, effectively alleviating feelings of loneliness.

We look forward to more exchanges with partners and associations, joining forces to build a more comprehensive ecosystem empowered by AI. Thank you all, and I wish everyone a prosperous Year of the Horse and that all your wishes come true!