“ChinAI #366: Most Companion Robots Die by Day 30” by Jeffrey Ding

<p><strong>Featured links</strong></p><ul><li><a href="https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/HNM7_aWoqgQIitDcwJZmAw" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer">Huxiu piece</a></li><li><a href="https://www.fastcompany.com/91570086/ubtech-first-commercial-human-like-robot" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer">Fast Company</a></li><li><a href="https://chinai.substack.com/p/chinai-341-big-tech-v-the-chinese?utm_source=publication-search" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer">ChinAI #341</a></li><li><a href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/11UUx3tPaHQR9Pf1VcSRlLFcK_qh7QA3eL6TC5y7oR6I/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer">Most Companion Robots Die by Day 30</a></li><li><a href="https://ocpl.substack.com/p/labelling-ai-generated-content-in" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer">Labelling AI-Generated Content in China - Where the Rules Work and Where They Don’t</a></li><li><a href="https://www.chinafile.com/conversation/are-there-any-good-ideas-ai-governance" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer">Are There Any Good Ideas for AI Governance?</a></li><li><a href="https://positionspolitics.org/fan-yang-back-to-the-future-a-walk-through-huaqiangbei-in-2025/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer">Fan Yang, Back to the Future: A Walk through Huaqiangbei in 2025</a></li><li><a href="https://read.dukeupress.edu/positions/article-abstract/24/3/589/21785/From-Bandit-Cell-Phones-to-Branding-the-Nation?redirectedFrom=fulltext" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer">Shanzhai (or “knockoff”) cell phones</a></li><li><a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09692290.2026.2674989" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer">Who is us: the globalization of innovation and challenges to assessing technological dependence</a></li></ul>

<p><strong>Thank you for reading and engaging</strong></p>

<p>These are Jeff Ding's (sometimes) weekly translations of Chinese-language musings on AI and related topics. Jeff is an Assistant Professor of Political Science at George Washington University.</p>

<p><span>Check out the archive of all past issues&nbsp;</span><a href="https://chinai.substack.com/archive" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer">here</a><span>&nbsp;&amp; please&nbsp;</span><a href="https://chinai.substack.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer">subscribe here</a><span>&nbsp;to support ChinAI under a&nbsp;</span><em>Guardian</em><span>/Wikipedia-style tipping model (everyone gets the same content but those who can pay for a subscription will support access for all).</span></p>

<p><span>Any suggestions or feedback? Let me know at <a href="mailto:chinainewsletter@gmail.com">chinainewsletter@gmail.com</a> or on Twitter at&nbsp;</span><a href="https://twitter.com/jjding99" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer">@jjding99</a></p> <p>---</p>

<p><b>First published:</b><br/>

July 13th, 2026 </p>

<p><b>Source:</b><br/>

<a href="https://chinai.substack.com/p/chinai-366-most-companion-robots?utm_source=TYPE_III_AUDIO&utm_medium=Podcast&utm_content=Source+URL+in+episode+description&utm_campaign=ai_narration" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://chinai.substack.com/p/chinai-366-most-companion-robots</a> </p>

<p>---</p>

<p>Narrated by <a href="https://type3.audio/?utm_source=TYPE_III_AUDIO&utm_medium=Podcast&utm_content=Narrated+by+TYPE+III+AUDIO&utm_term=jeffrey_ding&utm_campaign=ai_narration" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">TYPE III AUDIO</a>.</p>

<p>---</p><div style="max-width: 100%";><p><strong>Images from the article:</strong></p><a href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!UKZk!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fc376bab8-c441-4f07-9c1f-414d99e9e26a_1000x558.png" target="_blank"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!UKZk!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fc376bab8-c441-4f07-9c1f-414d99e9e26a_1000x558.png" alt="This image depicts the drop-off in users by Day 30. Source: