Dancing Moves

China’s latest robotics spectacle looks less like a lab demo and more like a pop concert which it is. In Chengdu, Chinese American singer Wang Leehom recently shared the stage with six humanoid robots from Hangzhou‑based Unitree, which performed tightly synchronized choreography, spins, jumps, and even Webster flips to his song “Open Fire.” Clad in coordinated costumes and moving in near‑perfect unison, the robots drew huge cheers in the arena and millions of views online, blurring the line between backup dancer and cutting‑edge machine. 

Watching the video made me wonder who is meant to the bar for perfection, the humans will never achieve the level of perfect symmetry and synchronicity of the robots. If that were to be the measure of greatness, humans will easily lose. Yet this was always a standard to performances involving a group.​

The Chengdu show is part of a broader push by Chinese firms to showcase humanoid robots in mainstream culture, not just industry. Earlier this year, Unitree’s robots also performed the traditional Yangge folk dance at the 2025 Spring Festival Gala, manipulating handkerchiefs and matching human dancers step for step in a highly choreographed routine that mixed heritage with high tech. Engineers say the robots rely on AI‑driven full‑body motion control, panoramic depth sensing, and real‑time music interpretation to stay balanced, in sync, and responsive on a crowded stage, capabilities that go far beyond pre‑programmed, repetitive moves.​

International reaction has been swift. Clips of the Chengdu performance were amplified by major outlets and tech influencers, On Chinese social media, viewers marveled that robots that were doing simple handkerchief spins at the Spring Gala less than a year ago are now pulling off complex acrobatics alongside pop stars, seeing it as a symbol of how quickly domestic AI and robotics are advancing.​

For companies like Unitree, these viral shows double as live product demonstrations and soft‑power branding. The same platforms dazzling concert crowds are being pitched for future roles in homes and workplaces, from entertainment and fitness to logistics and elder care. By dropping them into beloved cultural formats, Spring Festival variety shows, arena tours, folk dances, China is normalizing the presence of humanoid robots in everyday life and signaling its ambition to lead not only in industrial automation but in the consumer‑facing, emotionally resonant side of AI as well.