23 Daily — According to 36kr.com, on November 2, 2026, the press conference for the Humanoid Robot and Embodied Intelligence Real-Scene Training Challenge was held in Beijing. The conference announced the overall competition plan and mobilized participating teams. Hosted jointly by the Ma’anshan Municipal Government, the Chinese Institute of Electronics, and the World Robot Cooperation Organization, the challenge aims to test technological maturity in real factory, hotel, and community environments, facilitating the alignment of innovation outcomes with practical demand and accelerating the industrial application of humanoid robot and embodied intelligence technologies. Ma’anshan officials including Standing Committee Member and Executive Vice Mayor Yi Maolin, Deputy Secretary-General Liang Liang of the Chinese Institute of Electronics, Secretary-General Wu Bin, and Director Teng Qing of the Industrial and Information Technology Bureau attended the event.
Competition Focuses on Real-Scene Training to Validate Technology and Applications
Deputy Secretary-General Liang Liang of the Chinese Institute of Electronics stated that humanoid robot and embodied intelligence technologies are rapidly evolving, with the industry entering an important window for scaled applications. The industry focus has shifted from technology supply to solving problems tailored to specific scenarios. The challenge designs 13 events across five major scenes—logistics, manufacturing, service, safety, and cultural sports—bringing the competition into real production and living environments such as factories, logistics centers, hotels, and communities. Through real tasks, environments, and operational conditions, the challenge tests technological and product maturity, accumulates high-quality real-machine data and practical experience, and promotes a close connection between research, production, and application to drive high-quality industrial development.
Ma’anshan Builds a Billion-Yuan Embodied Intelligence Industry Cluster
Yi Maolin noted that Ma’anshan has over 100 companies in the AI and robotics industrial chain and has been approved to build Anhui Province’s AI Vision Large Model Future Industry Pilot Zone. The city aims to develop its AI and robotics industries into a billion-yuan strategic cluster during the 15th Five-Year Plan. Ma’anshan has established an Embodied Robotics Innovation Center, capable of supplying 500,000 hours per year of high-quality real-machine data, with computing capacity exceeding 1,600P, forming a high-quality computing supply system. More than 190 robot application demonstration scenarios with promotion value have been identified, covering seven fields including industrial manufacturing, logistics distribution, life services, and public safety. The challenge leverages this foundation by emphasizing demand orientation, real-scene testing, characteristic integration, and outcome transformation to comprehensively promote technology adoption and industry development.
Ma’anshan Government Strengthens Competition Organization and Support
Secretary-General Wu Bin of Ma’anshan Municipal Government stated that the city government attaches great importance to event preparation, establishing a specialized organizing committee and cross-department collaboration mechanisms to ensure efficient operation. The competition will utilize real scenes like express logistics centers, residential communities, and hotels to provide stable testing environments. The government plans to renovate the Ma’anshan Sports and Exhibition Center to allocate competition, viewing, and debugging areas that meet requirements. Transportation shuttle services and a volunteer team composed of university students and professionals will be provided, along with safety and emergency plans to maintain security and order during the event.
Editor's take: Real-Scene Training Challenge Creates Practical Validation Opportunities for Embodied Intelligence Industry
By situating the competition in real factories, hotels, and communities, this challenge confronts technological issues in true operational environments. For entrepreneurs, it presents valuable opportunities to validate and optimize technology and products based on real demands, fostering a virtuous cycle between R&D and market needs. Ma’anshan’s strong computing resources, diverse application scenarios, and comprehensive service support create favorable conditions for teams to compete and collaborate. Entrepreneurs participating can obtain real-machine testing data, industry credibility, and policy support, accelerating technology commercialization and enhancing practical value verification.