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Dylan Butts

Detractors of artificial intelligence (AI) often warn of a terminator-like event or mass job losses if the technology is not contained. In light of these and other AI fears, Hong Kong-based start-up Rice Robotics has designed its autonomous robot with a vital feature in mind: “friendliness”.
The company has already deployed hundreds of its puppy-eyed AI robots throughout Japan and Hong Kong, and on Tuesday, it announced a fleet of its latest models - priced from US$10,000 each - were operating in the city’s iconic Citic Tower skyscraper.
“The beauty of this project is that in addition to deploying the robots, we have integrated them with Citic Tower’s building management system under one platform,” said Rice Robotics founder and CEO Victor Lee Kwok Hong.
Start-ups chase fortune at Asian Games with robot dogs, cooking machines
As a result, the robots are now able to take the lift and travel around the building seamlessly and autonomously, providing a 24/7 operation, he added.
While the cute-looking bots are expected to focus primarily on disinfecting the building’s 33-stories, they can also perform other duties such as deliveries, security patrols, and chat-based concierge services, according to the company.
The project, which took months of planning, is Rice Robotics’ first deployment of multiple robots inside a commercial building in Hong Kong, and is part of a larger automation trend in the city.
AI robots can be found throughout Hong Kong, from hotpot restaurants using autonomous waiters to the city’s international airport employing cleaning and sanitation bots, with tech giants such as Samsung Electronics supplying the market.

Despite being founded in Hong Kong in 2019, Rice Robotics has been primarily focused on the Japanese market, where Lee says automation and AI robots have gained faster traction, mostly due to ageing demographics and labour shortages in the country.
According to a report from the International Federation of Robots, staff shortages are a strong driver for automation among service companies, with the total number of service robots sold for professional use reaching 158,000 units in 2022 – a year-on-year increase of 48 per cent. In the hospitality sector, the growth rate was 125 per cent.
Robot adoption has also been high in South Korea, bolstered by similar demographic factors. There were 5,000 server robots working as waiters in Korean restaurants in 2022, according to the Korean Association of Robot Industry.
The booming field has also caught the attention of investors. Doosan Robotics, which makes robots that can pour beer, brew coffee, and even cook fried chicken, was the largest initial public offering on the Seoul stock exchange this year, raising US$312 million.
Although Hong Kong has experienced a labour crunch over the past year, automation in the city has been primarily focused on human-enhancement instead of replacing workers, and adoption is likely to move slower than in Japan in the near term, said Lee.
China’s award-winning ‘Transformer’ moves like a robot in disguise
However, he believes the characteristics that have made Rice Robotics successful in Japan will transfer to Hong Kong, especially the robot’s friendly design, which was originally tailored to Japanese consumer sensibilities.
“The design features must have a human factor,” said Lee, adding that the company seeks to make the user experience as natural as possible.
“These robots are still a new product, and a lot of people still don’t understand what they can do, so it’s our job to educate and show that robots can be friendly and relieve burdens,” said Lee.
That thinking, according to Lee, was part of the rationale behind the name of the company: rice being an essential food staple for most Asian consumers.
Rice Robotics, which has raised about US$7 million so far, is hoping to announce its entry into new markets by the end of next year.


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Robotics

From Hong Kong to Japan, start-up Rice Robotics brings ‘friendly’ AI bots to the service sector

A friendly-looking robot from Rice Robotics roam around Hong Kong’s Citic Tower. Photo: Handout

Victor Lee, the founder and CEO of Rice Robotics. Photo: Handout

World’s first mass-produced humanoid robot? China start-up Fourier Intelligence eyes two-legged robots with AI brains

Fourier Intelligence’s GR-1 robot walks past the company logo at its headquarters in Shanghai. Photo: Handout

Alex Gu, founder and chief executive of Fourier Intelligence. Photo: Handout

A Fourier Intelligence engineer tests the self-balancing ability of the company’s humanoid robot. Photo: Handout

AI robots could run the world better than humans, robots tell UN summit

From left: AI robot frontwoman Desdemona, healthcare assistant robot Grace, SingularityNET CEO Ben Goertzel and tele-operated android Geminoid HI-2 attend a panel of AI-enabled humanoid social robots in Geneva on Friday. Photo: AFP

AI robots are showcased at the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) AI for Good Global Summit in Geneva, Switzerland on Friday. From left, standing: Mika, Sophia, Ai-Da, Desdemona and Grace. Sitting, far right: Geminoid HI-2. Photo: AFP

Hanson Robotics CEO David Hanson, right, listens to AI robot Sophia at the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) AI for Good Global Summit in Geneva, Switzerland on Friday. Photo: AFP

AI-powered humanoid social robot Nadine, left, modelled on professor Nadia Magnenat Thalmann, right, at the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) AI for Good Global Summit in Geneva, Switzerland on Friday. Photo: AFP

Israeli firm Verobotics pushes use of AI-powered robots to ascend and clean Hong Kong’s skyscrapers, as city leader John Lee hails ‘promising’ tech

A close-up shot of the nine-kilogram, artificial intelligence-powered cleaning robot from Verobotics during a test on the facade of a high-rise building. Photo: Handout

Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu, far right, is seen in a discussion with Verobotics co-founder and chief executive Ido Genosar, centre, on June 18, 2023, at the conclusion of the two-day Hong Kong Science Fair at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre in Wan Chai. Photo: Handout

The nine-kilogram, artificial intelligence-powered cleaning robot from Verobotics is seen being tested on the facade of a high-rise building. Photo: Handout

Verobotics co-founder and chief technology officer Itay Levitan, left, and fellow co-founder Ido Genosar, the company’s chief executive. Photo: Handout

A cleaning apparatus is rappelled from under Israeli start-up Verobotics’ artificial intelligence-powered robot, which is deployed on the facade of a high-rise building. Photo: Handout

AI firm SenseTime unveils consumer robot that plays Chinese game of Go, as it seeks to fend off US encirclement

The new product called SenseRobot can play Go with human opponents on a real chessboard. Photo: SCMP/ Ann Cao

SenseTime CEO and co-founder Xu Li said the new robot aims to ‘bring AI into thousands of households’. Photo: Handout 

Tech

Tech Trends

Business

The start-up has deployed its fleet of autonomous robots in Hong Kong’s Citic Tower skyscraper, where they can freely use lifts
The company has built up a lot of traction in the Japanese market, where AI robot adoption is being driven by labour shortages


Hong Kong start-up Rice Robotics has deployed a fleet of ‘friendly’ AI-powered robots in the Citic Tower skyscraper, as the city plays catch-up with Japan and South Korea in automation.


From Hong Kong to Japan, start-up Rice Robotics brings ‘friendly’ AI bots to the service sector

The start-up has deployed its fleet of autonomous robots in Hong Kong’s Citic Tower skyscraper, where they can freely use lifts The company has built up a lot of traction in the Japanese market, where AI robot adoption is being driven by labour shortages

The start-up has deployed its fleet of autonomous robots in Hong Kong’s Citic Tower skyscraper, where they can freely use lifts

The company has built up a lot of traction in the Japanese market, where AI robot adoption is being driven by labour shortages