Robot training facility drives humanoid robot development in Zhengzhou, C China's Henan

Trainers train robots at a heterogeneous humanoid robot training facility, located inside a 4S store for heterogeneous humanoid robots in Zhongyuan Science and Technology City, Zhengzhou, central China's Henan Province. (People's Daily Online/Chang Liyuan)

A three-robot band took to the stage at a 4S store for heterogeneous humanoid robots in Zhongyuan Science and Technology City, Zhengzhou, central China's Henan Province, on March 10, drawing applause from more than 20 visitors on a study tour.

A heterogeneous humanoid robot training facility inside the store was completed in just 40 days, following an agreement signed at the World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC) 2025 in Shanghai last July. This makes Henan the third place in China to host a heterogeneous humanoid robot training facility, after Beijing and Shanghai.

In the agricultural robot zone of the training facility's exhibition hall, a robot was trained on tasks such as pollinating and pruning strawberry plants. In the service robot zone, another robot progressed under a trainer's guidance from stiff movements to fluid motions. Meanwhile, in the specialized robot zone, a robot broke through a guardrail and carried out inspection and maintenance operations inside a mock tunnel.

Chen Yang, business manager at Henan Embodied Intelligence Industrial Development Co., Ltd., explained that the 4S store and training facility operate on an innovative "front shop, back factory" model. The ground floor is open for free visits, while the second floor charges admission and showcases dozens of major robot models that visitors can interact with.

Chen explained that at the training facility, each robot is assigned a dedicated trainer, with data from every movement uploaded to the cloud to support future upgrades. More than 150 million visual data points have been collected from a clothes-folding task alone.

The facility houses 140 humanoid robots, trained to perform tasks across six areas, including modern agriculture, industrial manufacturing and health care. The training is carefully aligned with Henan's 12 pillar industries and 27 application scenarios.

A trainer trains a robot to grasp and place objects at a heterogeneous humanoid robot training facility, located inside a 4S store for heterogeneous humanoid robots in Zhongyuan Science and Technology City, Zhengzhou, central China's Henan Province. (People's Daily Online/Chang Liyuan)

A trainer trains a robot to prune strawberry plants at a heterogeneous humanoid robot training facility, located inside a 4S store for heterogeneous humanoid robots in Zhongyuan Science and Technology City, Zhengzhou, central China's Henan Province. (People's Daily Online/Chang Liyuan)

A trainer trains a robot to pick strawberries at a heterogeneous humanoid robot training facility, located inside a 4S store for heterogeneous humanoid robots in Zhongyuan Science and Technology City, Zhengzhou, central China's Henan Province. (People's Daily Online/Chang Liyuan)

A robotic dog interacts with a young visitor at a 4S store for heterogeneous humanoid robots in Zhongyuan Science and Technology City, Zhengzhou, central China's Henan Province. (People's Daily Online/Chang Liyuan)

Robots present a dance performance at a 4S store for heterogeneous humanoid robots in Zhongyuan Science and Technology City, Zhengzhou, central China's Henan Province. (People's Daily Online/Chang Liyuan)

A robot mimics human movements using its sensors at a heterogeneous humanoid robot training facility, located inside a 4S store for heterogeneous humanoid robots in Zhongyuan Science and Technology City, Zhengzhou, central China's Henan Province. (People's Daily Online/Hou Linlin)

Robots perform inside a 4S store for heterogeneous humanoid robots in Zhongyuan Science and Technology City, Zhengzhou, central China's Henan Province. (People's Daily Online/Chang Liyuan)

A robot carries out inspection and maintenance operations inside a simulated tunnel at a heterogeneous humanoid robot training facility, located inside a 4S store for heterogeneous humanoid robots in Zhongyuan Science and Technology City, Zhengzhou, central China's Henan Province. (People's Daily Online/Chang Liyuan)

A robotic dog interacts with a young visitor at a 4S store for heterogeneous humanoid robots in Zhongyuan Science and Technology City, Zhengzhou, central China's Henan Province. (People's Daily Online/Chang Liyuan)

A 185-cm-tall humanoid robot, the tallest of its kind in China, stands at a 4S store for heterogeneous humanoid robots in Zhongyuan Science and Technology City, Zhengzhou, central China's Henan Province. (People's Daily Online/Chang Liyuan)

A robot prunes strawberry plants at a heterogeneous humanoid robot training facility, located inside a 4S store for heterogeneous humanoid robots in Zhongyuan Science and Technology City, Zhengzhou, central China's Henan Province. (People's Daily Online/Chang Liyuan)

A humanoid robot writes the Chinese character "fu," meaning good fortune, at a 4S store for heterogeneous humanoid robots in Zhongyuan Science and Technology City, Zhengzhou, central China's Henan Province. (People's Daily Online/Chang Liyuan)