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At dawn on Qingming Festival, also known as Tomb-Sweeping Day, a white vessel quietly departed from a harbor in Dalian, a coastal city in northeastern China.
Neither a cruise ship nor a fishing boat, it was a specialized sea burial ship, carrying mourners and floral tributes for solemn ceremonies.

For 28 years, Captain Chen Qi has witnessed a profound shift in China's approach to sea burials -- in 1997, he facilitated ceremonies for only a dozen families; today, his team lays more than 7,000 souls to rest in the vast embrace of the ocean and conducts over 400 ceremonies annually.

ONCE-TABOO SAILS

Upon reaching the designated sea burial site, Chen sounded the ship's whistle three times in funeral tribute. The deceased's family members then carefully lowered biodegradable burial urns into the water.

"For sailors, sounding the whistle three times means a crew member has fallen into the water," Chen said. He has adopted this to symbolize the deceased coming to the sea, signaling that it is time for a final farewell.

His career began unexpectedly in 1997, when Dalian, in Liaoning Province, first introduced sea burials. At the time, the practice was considered taboo by many sailors, as traditional ground burials were still the prevailing custom.

Chen had been the captain of a sightseeing boat when he helped a friend with a sea burial using his vessel. "When word spread, some tourists refused to board, so I converted this vessel to be used exclusively for sea burials."

In the early days, mourners gathered at a coastal park before boarding the ship together. But some of the park's other visitors considered the practice to be bad luck and complained to city administration, forcing Chen to change his assembly location and move between shorelines, ports and docks to avoid conflict over the years.

GROWING SOCIAL ACCEPTANCE

In recent years, rising environmental awareness has changed public attitudes and increased the public's acceptance of sea burials. Today, it is not only local families who seek out Chen's services; people from inland cities as far away as Xi'an -- more than a thousand kilometers from Dalian -- have consulted with Chen or his team.

"Some even plan funerals when they are alive, opting for a sea burial in the hope that their soul will flow freely in the vast ocean. Wherever there is water, their descendants will be able to remember them," Chen said.

Chang Chunsheng, who is from Tieling City in Liaoning, said, "My father loved the ocean. Resting there fulfills his final wish."

This growing acceptance of sea burials reflects both changing public views and government support. In 2012, Liaoning pioneered to provide free sea burials and related subsidies. In 2017, local authorities officially permitted Chen to make regular voyages from Pier 6 of the Port of Dalian.

By March 2025, about 17,000 deceased individuals from Dalian chose to be buried at sea since 2012, saving 50,000 square meters of land that would otherwise have been used for ground burials.

Data from the Ministry of Civil Affairs reveals that the number of sea burials across the country has been steadily increasing. Over the past five years, nearly 200,000 deceased individuals have been laid to rest in the ocean.

PASSING ON THE TORCH

Chen's team is also growing, expanding from a single, family-owned vessel to three vessels with a staff of around 30, including crew members and funeral presiders.

Chen has witnessed countless personal journeys over the past 28 years. He remembers mourners who clutched thick music manuscripts as they said goodbye to a deceased composer, and adult siblings who mourned their late father as they carried bowls of pork vermicelli, a traditional dish in northeastern China, in the hope that he could enjoy his favorite dish in the afterlife.

For years, his son Chen Jin, now 39, has been working alongside with Chen Qi. Chen Jin took over the sea burial business following his father's retirement, and has launched an online memorial platform where families can share photos, messages and virtual tributes, with plans to develop more personalized post-burial ceremonies.

He also performs proxy ceremonies with his father, delivering flowers and letters at sea for those who are unable to mourn their loved ones in person.
Chen Jin believes his career has a profound purpose: "Our duty is not only to honor the deceased, but also to comfort the living, leaving them with love and memories through a dignified farewell."

Following joint military exercises around Taiwan island a day earlier, the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) Eastern Theater Command on Wednesday continued its operations, organizing the "Strait Thunder-2025A" exercises in the central and southern areas of the Taiwan Straits. An expert on the Taiwan question said the sustained exercises by the PLA not only impose military pressure on "Taiwan independence" forces but, more importantly, expose and weaken the political tactics of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities, who seek to manipulate cross-Straits confrontation and hold the interests of the Taiwan people hostage.

The "Strait Thunder-2025A" exercises caught the DPP authorities off guard, Zheng Jian, a professor at the Taiwan Research Institute of Xiamen University, told the Global Times on Wednesday.

Zheng noted that compared with earlier speculations from Taiwan commentators, this round of exercises was more powerful in deterrence. "The PLA's evolving drill patterns - marked by increased unpredictability - have left the 'Taiwan independence' forces unable to anticipate its actions, subjecting them to growing psychological pressure," Zheng said.

According to Taiwan media reports, the exercises had an immediate effect in imposing de facto blockade around Taiwan island. Taiwan's CTI News reported that a liquefied natural gas carrier was unable to leave port after the drills began, blocked by the exercise area. "This demonstrates that the designated zones for maritime and aerial operations were carefully planned and precisely executed," Zheng said

The PLA Eastern Theater Command further announced on Wednesday that its ground forces had carried out live-fire drills in the East China Sea, targeting simulated key infrastructure such as ports and energy facilities. The command said the exercise aimed to control energy routes, cut supply channels, and block covert passages, vowing to resolutely sever the "green terror and Taiwan independence path."

Although the DPP authorities and "Taiwan independence" forces tried to maintain a calm front, claiming that everything is under control, however, Zheng noted that their reactions this time exposed clear vulnerabilities.

"The current drill has already placed the Taiwan island in a quasi-blockade situation," Zheng said. "While Taiwan's so-called 'defense authority' downplays the exercise, local media reports and public comments reflect genuine anxiety and unease."

Zheng said that the "Taiwan independence" forces are unable to assess the drills' scale, scope, and duration. "This uncertainty itself is a major blow to them," he said.

More fundamentally, the sustained PLA exercises strike at the core of the DPP authorities' governance model. Zheng said that Lai Ching-te has been promoting "green dictatorship " on the island, suppressing opponents and fueling social division, while deliberately provoking cross-Straits tensions and creating an atmosphere of anti-mainland hostility to cover up his own governance failures.

"Such political manipulation only forces the people of Taiwan to bear greater risks and costs," Zheng said. "Although the current drills are military in nature, they also serve as a real warning. They tellthe people of Taiwan - the DPP authorities, for their own political interests, are willing to put the entire island in danger," said Zheng.

When asked about China's response to Ukraine saying it is ready to accept an immediate 30-day ceasefire with Russia proposed by the US, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said on Wednesday that China has noted the relevant reports. Mao added that from the first day of the outbreak of the crisis, China has been advocating dialogue and negotiation to seek a political solution. 

Mao stated, "We have always been striving for peace and promoting peace talks. We look forward to all parties involved finding, through dialogue and negotiation, a sustainable and lasting peace plan that address each other's concerns."

Wu Weiren, chief designer of China's lunar exploration program, called for operational asteroid defense services and deeper international cooperation to protect the Earth, advocating for a global planetary defense community, when addressing the 776th session of the Xiangshan Science Conference, themed "Key Scientific and Engineering Challenges in Near-Earth Asteroid (NEA) Defense," which convened on Thursday and will continue through Friday at the Xiangshan Hotel in Beijing.

Organized by the Deep Space Exploration Laboratory (DSEL), the conference gathered over 50 leading Chinese space scientists and researchers. Discussions focused on four core topics: asteroid defense science, detection, tracking, and impact technology.

Wu, who is also the director general of the DSEL, co-chaired the event alongside Wang Chi, academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and director of the National Space Science Center, and Yu Dengyun, academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and deputy director of the Science and Technology Committee of the state-owned space giant China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, Global Times learned from the event organizer the DSEL on Thursday.

Wu warned that a major asteroid impact could devastate human civilization, even leading to extinction, calling it a critical threat to Earth's future. He emphasized that China's pursuit of near-Earth asteroid (NEA) defense missions carries profound scientific significance, engineering value, and humanistic importance.

Currently, several major spacefaring countries around the world are developing programs related to near-Earth asteroid defense. For example, the US' Near-Earth Asteroid Defense Demonstration and Validation Mission, known as the "Double Asteroid Redirection Test" (DART) mission, successfully conducted a kinetic impact on Dimorphos, the moon of the asteroid Didymos, in September 2022, effectively altering its orbital period around Didymos.

The European Space Agency's Hera mission will further conduct detailed investigations of the target impacted by the DART mission. As a responsible spacefaring country, China also places great importance on the threat posed by near-Earth asteroids to Earth and human safety. Previously, China has publicly disclosed plans related to near-Earth asteroid defense missions and is accelerating their planning and implementation.

At the opening ceremony and main forum of the first International Conference on Deep Space Exploration (Tiandu), held in April 2023, experts from China's deep space exploration field provided the public with a detailed introduction to China's near-Earth asteroid defense plan.

They also openly solicited global proposals for the overall plan and related strategies for the first mission, with the goal of achieving a kinetic impact on an asteroid for the first time by 2030. At the second International Conference on Deep Space Exploration (Tiandu) held in 2024, the China National Space Administration (CNSA) released the plan and vision for international cooperation regarding China's first near-Earth asteroid defense mission. According to this vision, China's initial near-Earth asteroid defense mission will adopt a "fly-along + impact + fly-along" approach. While the impactor performs a kinetic strike on the target asteroid, a probe will observe the entire impact process and post-impact, continue to assess the impact's effects and conduct scientific exploration. This single mission aims to achieve both "kinetic impact plus space-based assessment."

China's first NEA defense mission is expected to observe an asteroid closely before impacting it to alter its orbit around 2030, Xinhua News Agency reported on September 5, 2024, citing Tang Yuhua, deputy chief designer of Chang'e-7 Mission as saying.

"The blueprint for the country's asteroid defense involves two spacecraft - an impactor and an observer - launched into space with one rocket," Tang said, according to Xinhua.

The observer will first orbit the asteroid to gather data, then remotely guide the impactor to strike. After the kinetic impact, the observer will further have an accompanying flight with the very asteroid that changes its orbit, according to Tang.
Tackle challenges

At the conference, Wu highlighted the major challenges in precision impact, effective deflection, accurate measurement, and reliable communication. Key scientific challenges include understanding the dynamics and evolutionary characteristics of asteroid orbits, the mechanisms and effects of impact hazards, and the response mechanisms for in-orbit mitigation. Technologically, advancements are needed in detection, tracking, and impact capabilities under conditions involving multiple spatial variables, significant ground-space time delays, and complex data transmission environments.

Wu proposed building a coordinated space-ground monitoring network for asteroid tracking, early warnings, and risk assessment, alongside developing tailored spacecraft technologies for impact mitigation.

He called for a defense system integrating prevention and response, backed by in-orbit tests to refine mitigation strategies.

Wu's appeal aligns with growing global concerns over asteroid threats and planetary defense readiness. This focus intensified following NASA's recent update on asteroid "2024 YR4," first detected on December 27, 2024, by the Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System (ATLAS) in Chile. NASA's latest calculations lowered the impact probability of the 40-90 meter-wide asteroid striking Earth on December 22, 2032, to 0.004 percent, dismissing any immediate danger.

The Xiangshan Science Conference was initiated by the Ministry of Science and Technology (formerly the State Science and Technology Commission). Under the joint support of the ministry and the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), it was officially established in April 1993.

Health authorities in Dalian, Northeast China's Liaoning Province, refuted viral rumors on Friday about an alleged 'XK5 virus' infection in the city. The rumors, which spread widely on social media platforms including Douyin, claimed that the virus caused four fatalities in "Liaoning Third Hospital," infected thousands of people, and forced a group of doctors into isolation.

In a WeChat statement, officials from the Dalian health commission clarified that no such virus has been detected domestically or internationally. They described the disinformation as "old rumors repackaged," noting that similar misleading information has circulated online in the past.

A Global Times reporter found no record of a "Liaoning Third Hospital." While a similarly named "Liaoning No.3 People's Hospital" does exist, it is actually a mental health center focusing on psychiatric treatment.

The commission urged the public not to be misled by false information or spread unverified claims. Officials emphasized that official statements are the most reliable source for infectious disease updates and urged the public to stay vigilant against misinformation.

Two central government's bodies in Hong Kong reposted two opinion pieces ran by a Hong Kong newspaper Ta Kung Pao criticizing CK Hutchison Holdings, a conglomerate based in the city, for its decision to sell ports in Panama and elsewhere to an investment group led by an American asset manager. The latest piece asked if such a "shrewd" deal took into account the interests of the country. 

The two opinion pieces were published by Ta Kung Pao on Saturday and Thursday respectively. The opinion piece published on Saturday, which is titled "great entrepreneurs are all steadfast patriots," questioned CK Hutchison's selling of 43 ports, including assets it holds along the strategically important Panama Canal, to a group led by US firm BlackRock. 

It asked "why are so many important ports so easily transferred to the US forces that harbor malicious intentions? What kind of political calculations are hidden behind the so-called commercial behavior on the surface? Has the so-called 'shrewd' deal taken into account the interests of the country and the nation? Is such a choice actually helping the evildoers and bringing harm to China and the world?"

The article also warned if one fails to see clearly the true nature of those US politicians who "not only want money but also want you to die," and chooses to dance with them, one might perhaps manage to make a fortune for a while. However, in the end, there will be no future, and what's more, one will incur the condemnation of history.  

Ta Kung Pao also published an opinion piece on Thursday saying that this deal is a hegemonic act in which the US uses its national power to usurp the legitimate rights and interests of other countries through coercion, pressure and inducement. It is a form of power politics dressed up as a "commercial act."

The article urged relevant companies to think twice about the nature and crux of the issue, and also ponder about what stance to take and which side to stand on.

Both Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council, and Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in Hong Kong Special Administrative Region reposted on their websites the two opinion pieces published by Ta Kung Pao. 

Shares in CK Hutchison, which is controlled by Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-shing, fell 6.7 percent in Friday afternoon trading, on track for their biggest one-day percentage drop in about five years, according to the Wall Street Journal. 

CK Hutchison said earlier this month that it agreed to sell most of the global $22.8 billion ports business, including assets it holds along the strategically important Panama Canal, to a group led by BlackRock. In total, the consortium will control 43 ports in 23 countries. US President Donald Trump, who has called for the waterway to be removed from what he says is Chinese ownership, has hailed the deal, according to Reuters.

On March 5, Reuters asked the deal between CK Hutchison and BlackRock, said this would give a US firm control of key docks in that area amid pressure from the White House and asked the Chinese Foreign Ministry's comment on it. 

In response, Lin Jian, spokesperson from the ministry said: "we have no comment on the relevant commercial deal."

Lin noted that the government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region made a response to the operation of the ports by the relevant Hong Kong company. "Let me say more broadly that China supports Chinese companies, including those from Hong Kong SAR, in investing and doing business overseas. Hope they can have access to a fair and just business environment everywhere they go. We oppose any abuse of coercion and pressuring in international trade and economic relations," said Lin.

While CK Hutchison agreed to negotiate with the BlackRock consortium on an exclusive basis for 145 days according to a statement, the deal has not been finalized yet, reported the UK news agency.

CK Hutchison could not be reached for comments as of press time. 

Topics related to this potential deal have been trending on China's social media over the weekend. "Five questions on whether Li Ka-shing has considered national interest," which refers to the latest Ta Kung Pao opinion piece has been viewed 71.91 million times as of press time.

"Li Ka-shing is a successful businessman, but he is not an entrepreneur worthy of admiration … An entrepreneur worthy of respect must always prioritize national strategies over corporate interests," a Sina Weibo user under the name of Yunhebianliang Liuxia posted on Saturday. 

Lau Siu-kai, a consultant to the Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macau Studies, told the Global Times that the proposed transaction could undermine China's Belt and Road Initiative and harm the country's maritime and shipbuilding industries. If the US gains control of multiple overseas ports, it may impose significantly higher taxes on Chinese vessels.

Trump is also planning an executive order to charge fees for China-linked vessels at US ports, in a bid to resuscitate American shipbuilding and disrupt China's supply chains, per Reuters.

Willy Fu, a law professor and the director of the Chinese Association of Hong Kong & Macao Studies, told the Global Times that the transaction has also raised concerns about national security. As critical infrastructure, ports handle operational data and logistics information that are closely linked to national security. The sale of such vital assets to a foreign company raises questions about potential data leaks and security risks, which warrant serious consideration.

This transaction also serves as a wake-up call. In today's globalized world, corporate business activities are no longer purely commercial but also involve national interests and geopolitical considerations. We need to strengthen the protection of critical infrastructure and strategic resources to guard against potential risks, said Fu. 

Chinese private space star-up GalaxySpace has recently demonstrated mobile-to-satellite communication technology based on China's first low-Earth orbit (LEO) broadband communication experimental constellation, successfully connecting Beijing and Bangkok, capital of Thailand in a high-quality video link. 

In an exclusive interview with the Global Times on Thursday, the Chinese firm revealed its ambitious goal to develop space technology to contribute to the development of the Belt and Road Initiative space information corridor.

The demonstration of mobile-to-satellite communication technology took place on Wednesday at 10:28 am at a commercial space conference held in Beijing, as one satellite of the network codenamed "Mini Spider" passed over the conference venue. On-site staff used their mobile phones to connect to the satellite via a terminal device installed on the rooftop. Through a gateway station in Beijing, they established a connection with personnel in Beijing and Bangkok, the company told the Global Times on Thursday.

Wang Peng, head of communication networks of GalaxySpace, told the Global Times on Thursday that the satellite internet communication technology demonstrated this time can achieve a maximum speed of over 100 mbps, comparable to 5G speeds. It supports high-definition video calls and operates similarly to the satellite internet services currently being widely provided by SpaceX's Starlink, using dedicated terminal devices to connect with LEO satellites and offering support for high-bandwidth applications.

"At the same time, to meet the future demand for direct connectivity, GalaxySpace is developing a new generation of direct satellite-to-mobile communication technology," Wang disclosed.

According to the GalaxySpace technology head, the Mini Spider is China's first LEO broadband communication experimental constellation, currently consisting of eight satellites independently developed and successfully launched by GalaxySpace. 

So far, the network has completed multiple satellite internet application validations, including the in-vehicle "moving communication" test for the constellation and the first-ever deep-sea multi-satellite continuous communication test, marking an important step forward in the construction of the space-ground integrated network, Wang said. 

GalaxySpace and Thai telecom operator True Corporation on Monday inked a deal to carry out in-depth cooperation in low-orbit satellite communication technology, space-to-ground integrated network solutions, and mobile phone direct satellite communication technology to jointly promote the research and development and verification of related technologies.

The two companies will expand satellite application use scenarios and work together to build future-oriented digital infrastructure.

In May 2024, GalaxySpace, in collaboration with its partner, Mahanakorn University of Technology in Thailand, conducted a LEO satellite internet broadband communication network test and verification in Thailand, based on the "Mini Spider." The successful test marks the first overseas application exploration of China's LEO broadband satellite internet.

Huang Heping, general manager of International Business Development Department of the GalaxySpace, told the Global Times on Thursday that currently, GalaxySpace has reached cooperation agreements with industry partners in over 10 countries. Moving forward, GalaxySpace will use Thailand as a regional hub to promote further international collaboration, leveraging space technology to contribute to the development of the Belt and Road Initiative space information corridor.

Chinese researchers have decoded the genetic puzzle behind the regional characteristics of wheat, explaining why northern Chinese varieties tend to be harder while southern ones are softer.

A study recently published in the journal Nature, led by Zhang Xueyong's team from the Institute of Crop Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences with international collaborators, reveals key findings about wheat evolution and diversity after over 10,000 years of domestication.

By assembling chromosome-level genomes of 17 representative wheat varieties, researchers identified the peri-centromeric regions of chromosomes as critical zones for wheat differentiation.

The study shows Chinese wheat maintains higher genetic diversity than its foreign counterparts, possibly due to slower commercialization of breeding programs that inadvertently preserved resilient traits.

The team also solved the mystery surrounding winter and spring wheat divergence. While ancestral tetraploid wheats were predominantly spring-types with single VRN-A1 gene copies, later mutations in common wheat created winter varieties through altered gene copy numbers and enhanced cold tolerance.

An intriguing discovery links regional food preferences to wheat genetics. Grain hardness, controlled by Pina and Pinb genes, determines culinary uses.

Mutations in either gene produce harder grains ideal for baked goods, while intact genes yield softer wheat preferred for steamed buns. "This explains why northern China's wheaten food culture favors hard wheat, while southern regions lean toward softer varieties," Zhang explained.

Liu Xu, an Academician with the Chinese Academy of Engineering, noted the research marks China's entry into big-data era wheat germplasm studies, accelerating the discovery of vital agricultural genes.

Senior officials from Myanmar, China, and Thailand have arrived in Myawaddy in Myanmar to crack down on telecom fraud and illegal online gambling operations, China Media Group reported on Monday, citing Myanmar's State Administration Council's Information Team. 

Since the Myanmar authorities launched a crackdown on Myawaddy's scam centers, they have discovered a large number of foreigners illegally entering the country from neighboring nations. Between January 30 and February 16, they have reviewed and detained 1,030 illegal entrants. The joint task force, composed of senior officials from the three countries, is currently verifying identities and conducting detailed investigations to expedite the repatriation process.

Myanmar has already repatriated some of those detained, while efforts are underway to process the remaining individuals in accordance with legal procedures to ensure their swift repatriation to their home countries.

On Friday, Chinese Ambassador to Myanmar Ma Jia and the visiting Assistant Minister of Public Security Liu Zhongyi met with Myanmar's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, U Than Swe, and Minister of Home Affairs, Tun Tun Naung, according to the Chinese Embassy in Myanmar.

Both sides had in-depth exchange of views on enhancing China-Myanmar law enforcement and security cooperation, and on jointly tackling cross-border crimes such as telecom fraud and human trafficking, according to the statement.

When asked to comment on the meetings between Assistant Minister of Public Security Liu Zhongyi and Myanmar's officials, as well as Liu's visit to Thailand, Guo Jiakun, spokesperson of China's Foreign Ministry, said on Monday that the recent serious crimes involving online gambling and scam happened along the Thailand-Myanmar border threaten the life and property of citizens of China, Thailand and other relevant countries, and disrupt normal exchanges and cooperation between regional countries. 

China is carrying out active bilateral and multilateral cooperation with countries including Thailand and Myanmar. We have adopted various means to address both symptoms and the root cause and worked together to prevent lawbreakers from crossing borders, so as to jointly eradicate the problems of online gambling and scam, safeguard the life and property of the people, and uphold the order of exchanges and cooperation between regional countries, the spokesperson noted. 

The Chinese Foreign Ministry will continue working with competent authorities to direct our embassies and consulates overseas to properly handle relevant cases involving consular protection and help, and protect the safety of overseas Chinese and their lawful rights and interests, Guo said.

Southeast Asian countries have been stepping up efforts to combat telecom fraud. AFP reported on Saturday that a Myanmar ethnic militia was preparing to deport 10,000 people linked to cyber scams in the area it controls to Thailand as part of a crackdown on the illicit compounds.

Authorities in Thailand have arrested 10 Chinese suspects in connection with the case involving Chinese actor Wang Xing and have handed them over to the immigration department for repatriation to China, the Thai police said on Friday, according to Xinhua.

Thailand cut electricity, fuel supply, and internet services to five areas in Myanmar along the Thai-Myanmar border on February 5. 

Thai Deputy Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai, who also serves as the defense minister, said that online fraud has caused serious harm to Thai citizens and become a national security issue. The Thai government's investigation found that these five connection points are linked to online scam activities, Xinhua reported.

A source from Myawaddy told the Global Times that on February 7, two days after Thailand cut electricity, fuel and internet to five areas in Myanmar, the industrial park in Myawaddy where scam centers are located became erratic, with power outage in some buildings. 

The source also said power generators were being used in the industrial park day and night to provide electricity, adding that he hopes the scam centers will be raided soon. 

Humanoid robots in China have recently been capturing widespread attention with their diverse capabilities. They are now being deployed not only in daily life, performing cooking or cleaning, but also in industrial production within factories. They are even gearing up to take on the challenge of a half-marathon.

A robot manufacturer in South China's Guangdong Province has been busy with orders from across the country since the beginning of 2025. With a dual-arm load capacity of 40 kilograms and a highly bionic skeletal and muscular structure, the humanoid robot LeadIn D1, designed for industrial use, is capable of easily handling high-intensity tasks such as heavy lifting, material handling, and loading in industrial production, a staff member from Guangzhou Li Gong Industry Co, Ltd told the Global Times on Tuesday.

According to the company staff, LeadIn D1 is scheduled for official delivery to production lines in the second quarter of this year. Its application will span multiple industries, including aerospace, medical devices, and life sciences.

Especially in areas such as monitoring workshop capacity, tracking production task progress, as well as material handling, loading, and product assembly on production lines, LeadIn D1 can leverage intelligent interaction and precise operations to achieve digital and intelligent management of production processes.

Fourier's GRx Robot Series has also been trialed for deployment at car factories in Shanghai, where they are tasked with installing live high-voltage components and performing high-precision operations, a company representative told the Global Times on Tuesday.

The latest version of the Fourier GRx Robot Series, the GR-2 humanoid robot, stands 175 centimeters tall, weighs 63 kilograms, and has a battery life of up to two hours. GR-2 introduces more dexterous hands, designed to mirror the flexibility of human physiology, that can adapt seamlessly to complex tasks with greater precision.

The humanoid robots in the GRx Robot Series have been experimentally applied in scenarios such as reception, scientific research and education, industrial manufacturing, and rehabilitation healthcare, said the representative.

In terms of daily life, humanoid robots have also begun to be put into use. As the world's first full-sized humanoid robot driven purely by electric power, "Tiangong" can not only run on flat ground but also steadily move on slopes, grass, gravel, sand, and sandbags, according to a report by the Beijing Daily on Tuesday.

Since its official release in April 2024, Tiangong has already been used in multiple scenarios, including warehouse pick-and-place tasks and patrols for electrical plants, the Global Times has learned.

In April, for the first time, dozens of humanoid robots will participate in a half-marathon to be held in Beijing's Daxing district.

Wei Jiaxin, brand and public relations manager of the Beijing-based National and Local Co-built Embodied AI Robotics Innovation Center, introduced that participating in the marathon is ultimately about pushing boundaries and overcoming technical challenges in body structure and motion algorithms. This will help enhance compatibility, enabling humanoid robots to be used in a wider range of scenarios, according to the Beijing Daily.

By training humanoid robots in diverse environments and using them in remote operations, they become smarter and more capable. In a home setting, they can learn to do laundry, cook, and organize, paving the way for them to become helpful household assistants in the future, Wei added.

"Before humanoid robots entered factories, many industrial robots were already in place on China's automated production lines," Wang Peng, an associate research fellow at the Beijing Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Tuesday. However, he noted that humanoid robots, with their ability to mimic human movements, are better suited for complex environments. Their flexibility allows them to work in tight spaces, climb stairs, and navigate uneven terrain, tackling tasks that traditional industrial robots struggle with.

Wang further pointed out that industrial robots are mainly used for tasks like handling, welding, assembly, painting, processing, and cleanroom operations, covering most key areas of manufacturing. Meanwhile, humanoid robots have potential carrying out tasks requiring human-like flexibility or those beyond the capabilities of traditional industrial robots.

"In the future, humanoid robots and industrial robots may form a complementary relationship in industrial settings," Wang said.