Next China: YOUIBOT, China’s industrial mobile robot pioneer is going global

Note: The article was written by Icebin and translated by Zinan Zhang.

As China’s domestic smart manufacturing industry enters a new stage of development, the demand for robots continues to rise. YOUIBOT, as a highly influential participant in the production of industrial mobile robots, is having a considerable impact on the normalization of the use of robots across the entire Chinese manufacturing industry. A pioneer in China, the company is also looking at international expansion, with the exploration of markets in the Asia-Pacific region, Europe, and the US. 

As part of our Next China series, TechNode conducted a special interview with Zhang Chaohui, the founder and CEO of YOUIBOT, to discuss his firm’s products, the challenges of international expansion, and the future of robotics. 

1. YOUIBOT is already a pioneer in the field of industrial robotics. Tell us a little about your company’s journey to date. 

YOUIBOT applies high-precision Slam navigation mobile robots and application software systems to provide advanced manufacturing with upgraded in-house logistics solutions and intelligent inspection and operation solutions for the energy industry.

In the industrial logistics sector, YOUIBOT focuses on in-house logistics for advanced manufacturing, achieving a closed-loop of material flow and data flow throughout the facility’s entire lifecycle. YOUIBOT has committed to the semiconductor industry, covering the entire production process from upstream wafer fabrication, chip packaging and testing, to downstream assembly. It is the largest mobile robot enterprise in terms of shipments in the semiconductor field. Additionally, YOUIBOT continues to explore the new energy sector with lithium battery production at its core and is a partner to many well-known semiconductor and lithium battery manufacturing companies both domestically and internationally.

YOUIBOT has dedicated itself to the energy industry’s inspection and maintenance field. By utilizing robot motion control technology, AI vision algorithm technology, multi-machine scheduling, and online monitoring technology, YOUIBOT provides customers with a comprehensive intelligent inspection solution and assists energy industry clients in creating smart power plants, intelligent power grids, and other new intelligent management systems, offering intensive, intelligent, and unmanned advanced inspection and maintenance capabilities.

YOUIBOT focuses on advanced manufacturing logistics in China, primarily targeting the semiconductor and lithium battery fields, as well as providing intelligent inspection and maintenance solutions in the fields of electricity, new energy, and petrochemicals. Since 2021, YOUIBOT has actively expanded into overseas markets, with products shipped to over 30 countries and regions, and the establishment of more than 60 network sales channels.

In the global wave of industrial intelligence upgrades, autonomous mobile robots, as an advanced and mature productivity tool, play a significant role across various industries. In the field of mobile robots, China’s robot technology is on par with international standards, with the broadest market potential. 

2. The new energy industry, semiconductor industry, and 3C industry are currently highly dynamic sectors, both domestically and overseas. How has YOUIBOT adapted to this opportunity? 

We have a systematic process for industry analysis and selection, focusing on ‘advanced manufacturing and advanced capacity.’ In these fields, there is a pressing need for expansion and efficiency improvement, making the introduction of mobile robots for logistics automation in factories both necessary and urgent.

With this logic, industries such as semiconductors and lithium batteries become our primary focus. We concentrate on the production and manufacturing processes of these scenarios, developing integrated solutions for mobile robots. This ensures automated logistics on the production line as well as seamless data connectivity and helps factories achieve a closed loop of material and data flows throughout the entire production cycle, contributing to the goal of improving quality and efficiency.

However, it is not easy to achieve depth in the industry. Taking semiconductors as an example, wafer production is the most precise and demanding area in the electronics manufacturing process, requiring high standards for mobile robot equipment. For instance, to achieve class 100 cleanliness, the slightest vibration during handling will affect the yield of the lobes. We spent nearly two years in the early stages understanding the industry, and constantly refining product performance through interactions with factories and research centers. In 2021, we launched a composite mobile robot specifically for wafer production, and market feedback indicates that our early technical efforts have yielded excellent results. In industry technical performance tests, we often top the rankings, earning customer recognition and trust.

Facing the overseas market, we introduced the ‘Integrated’ strategy in 2022, expecting overseas business to account for over 30% of our activity within three years. We deeply integrate our rich and scalable landing experience in the Chinese semiconductor and lithium battery industries, along with the efficient integration capabilities and long-term customer service experience of local partners. This creates friendly and comprehensive service support, forming an overseas business layout centered on customers and supported by local partners.

Since officially entering the Japanese market in 2022, YOUIBOT has completed a comprehensive channel roll-out and established strong cooperative relationships with powerful players. This year, we will also establish a subsidiary in Japan, providing 24/7 responsive sales, technical support, and after-sales service capabilities. Thanks to the rapid development of Chinese manufacturing, Chinese industrial mobile robot brands have accumulated extensive project experience in improving manufacturing efficiency, automating upgrades, and landing high-end capacity over the past few years.

The foundation of industrial automation in the European market stems more from the accumulation of the past 20-30 years. YOUIBOT has a more mature experience compared to local European brands in the rapid deployment and application experience of new technologies. In the process of landing projects in the Chinese market, our products have undergone more stringent requirements, are constantly refined, and have superior performance including navigation accuracy, battery life, and fixed integrated interfaces. Simultaneously, experience from multiple project landings allows YOUIBOT to have a more complete understanding of end-user applications, providing more comprehensive solutions to customers and addressing their on-site needs and issues quickly. In addition to product performance advantages and solution capabilities, YOUIBOT provides more cost-effective products compared to European and American brands.

3. What are some of the challenges that Chinese companies face when they go global?

We said that every step in the global roll-out is a new beginning. Economic, political, industrial, and cultural factors vary greatly across different countries and regions. We first need to clarify the underlying logic of product demand, then tailor solutions that adapt to the corresponding needs based on different application scenarios.

• Products: Upgrade standard products running domestically to meet overseas standards, and refine them according to the requirements of overseas customers.
• Services: Provide comprehensive training and support to the channel network, offer 24/7 online services for key regions, and gradually establish local teams to enhance service efficiency.
• Sales: Layout and coverage of the channel network.

4. Robots are becoming increasingly crucial in the era of intelligent manufacturing, with some big name players such as ByteDance and Tesla entering the sector. How does YOUIBOT view the competition brought to the industry by these tech giants? 

The unveiling of Tesla’s Optimus humanoid robot in 2023 generated a lot of discussion among the public and led to sustained attention in the entire field of robotics. Robotics is an extensive field encompassing various types of service robots, special-purpose robots, and industrial robots like ours used in industrial settings. On a macro level, we hope more industry giants join the robotics market, introducing additional technology and resources to accelerate the iteration and evolution of the robotics industry. However, in the specific field of industrial mobile robots where we operate, unlike the consumer market, industrial scenarios are intricately segmented. Understanding customer points within these complex scenarios and providing professional solutions impose high demands on AMR (Autonomous Mobile Robot) vendors. One needs to comprehend both the scenarios and robot technology. Therefore, the entry barriers in this field are relatively high. 

Our technological foundation is quite solid, with over 50% of our team dedicated to research and development. We have established a modular and configurable product architecture tailored to diverse scenarios, enabling us to rapidly develop and deploy solutions to meet various market demands. Simultaneously, we collaborate with experts, educational institutions, and enterprises to create innovation labs, tackle research projects, and maintain exploration at the forefront of technology. In March 2023, we took the lead in a national key research and development project in semiconductors, aiming to fill the gap in industrial software for semiconductor production.

5. The rise of generative AI has led to some concerns over the technology in wider society. Are there similar issues regarding robotics? Where do you see the future of the sector?

We believe that mobile robots are a mature and advanced productivity tool. In the future, they will have various roles and positions similar to humans, participating in social production activities alongside humans. They will supplement human labor, free human hands, coexist harmoniously with humans, and contribute to creating a more harmonious world.

I don’t have much say on humanoid robots; I prefer to focus on the field of industrial mobile robots that I am engaged in. Currently, mobile robots, much like the early days of the internet, are gradually infiltrating various industries, bringing about a transformation in traditional production methods. It can be anticipated that as the scale of mobile robots grows, they will, in the future, develop their ecosystem, much like the automotive industry, with dedicated sales and service centers, charging stations, and cleaning facilities, forming their ecological industry.