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Firm launches AI World in i-City, with plans to deploy robots in area
A level higher than artificial intelligence (AI) and physical robot bodies, embodied intelligence is the merger of both technological systems into one, which enables once-upon-a-time static robots to perceive, learn and interact with the real world in dynamic and autonomous ways.
This convergence can now be experienced by the general population and interested parties at the AI World Experience Centre in i-City, which was launched by embodied intelligence robotics company Agibot last week.
Located right across DoubleTree by Hilton in Shah Alam, the experience centre is the first stage of a broader, long-term partnership between Agibot and i-City master developer I-Berhad.
The alliance will see further deployment of Agibot’s robots beyond just the experience centre and into the greater i-City area across property, hospitality, tourism and day-to-day urban life in the area.
On why Malaysia was chosen for the centre and to be a launchpad for the company’s bigger push into the Asia-Pacific (Apac) region, Agibot Malaysia country manager Steven Ding told theSun that it was due to how Malaysia’s market is very open to new technology.
“There is also interest from clients and industry partners in these technologies, such as AI to improve service and efficiency. Also, we have customers running projects in the country. That is why we’re bringing the technology and team here to enhance the industry progressively,” said Ding.
Robots on show
Being one-of-its-kind in Malaysia, AI World will have Agibot’s robot portfolio on display.
Each have their own sizes and capabilities, such as the X2 series, which are half-sized compact humanoids. Compared to the other models, the X2s are suited in more social environments due to how the robots able to move in a humanoid way while displaying complex, expressive movements.
This makes it and the other robot series adaptive for a wide variety of services, from logistics, material sorting to entertainment and more general roles.
Also present to speak with theSun, Agibot Asia-Pacific and Middle East Region president Abel Deng revealed that in a recent test involving precision metrics, the success rate in performance and efficiency reached 99% and over 100%, respectively.
“(The robots) are faster than human beings and are capable of (performing tasks that require precision) like in factories”.
Workforce impact questioned
For those present at the Agibot presentation that preceded the AI World launch and after it, similar to the conversation around generative AI and large language models, one question was constantly in mind: “Would these robots replace humans in the Malaysian job market?”
Fielding a question on whether there would be job displacements due to the robots, Deng explained that Agibot does not see it as robots replacing humans.
“From my understanding, humanoid or general purpose robots are there to help humans improve productivity and supplement (some forms of labour that are) dirty, dangerous or demanding”.
He further stressed that due to this new, rapidly growing industry, Agibot will be introducing and creating more job categories and cited how the steam engine transformed labour during the Industrial Revolution.
Though there is wariness over this, Ding said there is a lot of interest from enterprise clients in adopting Agibot’s robots into the “workforce”.
“I will not mention names (but the adoption scenarios will be) entertainment, manufacturing, logistics sorting and universities,” he revealed.
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