The 4-year-old Shenzhen startup that wants to bring robotic arms to everyday life

Ever since the dawn of humankind, people have tried to use tools instead of their bare hands to make life easier.

This trend has evolved from using utensils to eat food to the modern world where robots have either replaced or worked alongside humans in the workplace.

Photo credit: industriesman / 123RF

In the 1960s, US entrepreneur George Devol invented Unimate, considered the first industrial robot. General Motors used the machine for die casting handling and spot welding.

Since then, industrial robotic arms, which can be as large as a standing person, have been applied to a broad swathe of heavy manufacturing work. But Liu Peichao, a 33-year-old Shandong University graduate, wants to bring things full circle – he wants to bring robotic arms into everyday life to help with practical daily tasks.

Shenzhen Yuejiang Technology is a four-year-old Shenzhen startup that focuses on the development of smart robotic arms. Its products can be put to a variety of uses depending on the end attachment used, from writing calligraphy to putting butter on your toast.

Founded by Liu in 2015, the company started as a project at the American crowdfunding platform Kickstarter. It raised US$620,000 in just 50 days, according to China’s official news agency Xinhua. The company raised 100 million yuan (US$14 million) in its latest funding round last year led by Shenzhen Green Pine Capital Partners.

“We started with smart robotic arms and want to sell to ordinary families, just like household appliances,” said Liu in a speech this year.

The company’s spokesman confirmed the contents of Liu’s presentation but did not make him available for an interview with the Post.

One of its products – called the Dobot Magician – is a robotic arm priced between 10,000 yuan (US$1,400) and 16,999 yuan (US$2,400) that comes with coding support for users. Although not advanced enough for use in the home, it is being applied for educational purposes and students can develop it in a variety of ways.

The Dobot Magician robotic arm / Photo credit: Dobot

A student team from the University of Tokyo, together with Connected Robotics which adapts robots for use in the kitchen, has developed a Yuejiang robotic arm to work as a breakfast-making machine and it is being tested in a hotel in Japan.

Yuejiang Technology is not the only one eyeing desktop robotic arms, though.