2026 marks the inaugural year of the 15th Five-Year Plan, a critical period for the scaled development of the embodied intelligent robot industry, making standardization progress a major focus of the industry. Since the establishment of the Standardization Technical Committee for Humanoid Robots and Embodied Intelligence under the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT/TC8, hereinafter referred to as the "TC") in December 2025, the standardization of humanoid robots and embodied intelligence in China has entered a fast track. Recently, Yin Chengxin, head of the Development Planning Department of the TC Secretariat, accepted an exclusive interview with a reporter from China Electronics News, elaborating on topics such as the construction of the standard system, industrial empowerment, and international layout.
Demand-Driven, Steadily Advancing the Standardization of Humanoid Robots and Embodied Intelligence
Discussing the phased achievements and overall promotion pace since the establishment of the TC, Yin Chengxin stated that since its inception in December last year, the Secretariat has continuously strengthened top-level design and systematic planning, forming outcomes such as the overall architecture of the standard system, construction guidelines, layout planning, and project lists.
First, on February 28 this year, the TC officially released the "Standard System for Humanoid Robots and Embodied Intelligence (2026 Edition)" at the TC8 Annual Meeting (HEIS). This fills the gap in the domestic standard system for humanoid robots and embodied intelligence, builds a top-level framework for the subsequent formulation and implementation of various standards, and leads the standardization development of the humanoid robot and embodied intelligence industry. Second, during the "Standardization Week" from July 14 to 17 this year, the current research progress on the safety standard framework was introduced. The current safety standard work takes the overall concept of "combining active and passive safety" and the design concept of "full life cycle, full technology chain, and full scenarios" to build a safety and ethics standard system covering the entire process of robot R&D, training, deployment, operation, maintenance, and retirement, achieving identifiable risks, constrainable behaviors, traceable responsibilities, and sustainable governance.
At the organizational structure level, the TC has extensively absorbed industrial forces, achieving remarkable results in working group construction. It has established six major working groups: General, Limbs and Components, Brain-like and Intelligent Computing, Complete Machine and System, Application, and Safety, comprehensively covering all links of the technology chain. Meanwhile, during the "Standardization Week", plans were made to establish a Data Working Group, aiming to carry out standardization work around "data collection—data governance—data application", filling the gap of existing working groups in covering life cycle data standards, and deeply coordinating to strengthen the standard system for humanoid robots and embodied intelligence.
In the first half of the year, the TC accelerated the development of key standards, insisting on the coordinated advancement of technology, service, and safety standards. At the same time, it strengthened bottom-line thinking, accelerated the development of safety standards, and has launched research and pre-research on multiple mandatory national standards, with the aim of providing the most fundamental safety guarantee for industrial development.
"Since its establishment, the standardization of humanoid robots and embodied intelligence has been steadily advancing in a scientific and systematic pace," Yin Chengxin stated. In the second half of this year, the TC will continue to promote the orderly implementation of various tasks in accordance with the work concept of "demand-driven, application-verified, and open-collaborative".
From Formulation to Implementation: Three Major Measures Working Synergistically
Facing the challenge that the technology iteration speed of humanoid robots far exceeds the traditional standard formulation cycle, how does the TC ensure that standards can keep pace with industrial evolution? In response, Yin Chengxin pointed out that since the birth of humanoid robots, the speed of their technology iteration and industrial promotion has been unprecedented. Technological upgrades in traditional industries are measured in years, while in the field of humanoid robots and embodied intelligence, they are measured in months, and in many cases, changes occur every week. Therefore, standard development must also keep pace with technological advancements. In view of this, the TC8 follows the work requirements of "fast, excellent, and strong" for standards, strengthens the implementation and application of standards, places standard pre-research in a prominent position, enhances the "engineering" management capability of standards, and strengthens the development of safety and mandatory standards.
First, improving quality with "speed" by embedding standard pre-research into the entire process of prototype iteration and model training, exploring an agile model of "R&D is pre-research, mass production is standard implementation", ensuring standards "do not fall behind and can lead". Second, empowering with "excellence" by promoting the transformation of independent core technologies such as datasets and full life cycle management, as well as advanced management experience, into national and industry standards, actively participating in international standard formulation, and promoting the global expansion of "Chinese solutions". Third, setting up defenses with "strength" by accelerating the development of mandatory standards for special risk areas such as product safety, algorithm ethics, and data privacy, building a solid bottom line for industrial safety. Fourth, guiding with "application" by leading industry enterprises and supply chain enterprises to implement and meet standards, making standards fit for practical production.
Yin Chengxin stated that the core value of current standards to the industry lies in shifting the industry from "fighting alone" to "division of labor and collaboration", promoting supply chain synergy and reducing costs while increasing efficiency by unifying hardware interfaces, data formats, and safety requirements. The component sector urgently needs general standards such as mechanical and electrical interfaces and performance testing to promote scaled production; complete machine manufacturers focus on the integrated integration of hardware and software, safety certification, and modular assembly to reduce development complexity; the application end emphasizes scenario adaptability, reliability, and operation and maintenance standards to ensure products meet real scenario needs; and the data and model level emphasizes breaking "data silos", improving algorithm iteration efficiency, and reducing risks through full life cycle coding and testing frameworks.
Regarding the implementation difficulties from the release of industry standards to their actual adoption by enterprises, Yin Chengxin pointed out that standards actively implemented by enterprises usually possess three major characteristics: solving pain points, being operable, and increasing efficiency. Such standards can intuitively reflect economic benefits.
It is understood that the TC8 focuses on three major aspects: pre-research fitting needs, precise empowerment through promotion and implementation, and mechanism guarantee for implementation:
First, strengthening early pre-research. By capturing bottlenecks in technology iteration and product application through industrial research, enterprise symposiums, and technical verification, standard pre-research is integrated into the enterprise R&D process, creating a "R&D is pre-research" standard development mechanism to ensure standards are "genuinely usable".
Second, implementing layered promotion and implementation. Conducting layered training according to enterprise scale, focusing on standards leading innovation for leading enterprises, and improving implementation capabilities for small and medium-sized enterprises through "standards + practical cases". At the same time, strengthening tool support, developing standard implementation toolkits (such as digital management systems, testing templates, etc.), and quickly translating standard clauses into specific operations.
Third, strengthening closed-loop management. Establishing a feedback platform for the implementation effects of standards, regularly evaluating blockages in enterprise execution, and forming a rapid response mechanism; forming a dynamic standard optimization mechanism to shorten the standard revision cycle. At the same time, cultivating benchmark enterprises for standard application, driving the coordinated upgrade of the industrial chain through demonstration effects.
Multi-Dimensional Layout, Promoting the Alignment of Standards with the International System
Discussing how to promote standards from "paper" to the "workshop", Yin Chengxin believes that the essence lies in how to efficiently and quickly transform standards into enterprise competitiveness. In this process, the TC needs to complete the role transformation from "formulator" to "empowerer", guided by industrial value, building a closed-loop ecosystem of "pre-research—promotion—service—iteration", and truly becoming a server, promoter, and accelerator for the industry.
Regarding international standard construction, Yin Chengxin stated that the TC plans a multi-dimensional layout to promote the alignment of humanoid robot and embodied intelligence standards with the international system.
First, actively participating in the top-level design of global standardization in the field of humanoid robots and embodied intelligence, adhering to the concept of "people-oriented and striving for goodness", and committing to being a provider of international public goods. Second, transforming excellent "Chinese solutions" into international consensus through planned participation and leading the formulation of international standards. Third, strengthening communication and exchange with international standardization organizations, actively participating in global industrial governance, and actively playing the role of China's industry experts and think tanks around global issues such as "human-machine symbiosis, safety governance, and ethical challenges".
Yin Chengxin pointed out that through the dual-wheel drive of "technological breakthrough + ecological empowerment", China is expected to reshape the global competitive landscape of humanoid robots and embodied intelligence, achieving the leap from a large manufacturing country to a strong manufacturing country. Relying on the new nationwide system, fully utilizing China's massive application scenarios and industrial scale advantages, accelerating the promotion of core technology research, and supporting the formation of high-value industrial chains; and by building an open and collaborative ecosystem of "technology—standards—industry", supporting the leadership in the global industrialization process of humanoid robots and embodied intelligence.
Looking ahead, Yin Chengxin stated that standards are the foundational work for the long-term healthy development of the industry. In the 15th Five-Year Plan, not only is embodied intelligence included in the six major future industries, but standardization work is also mentioned 15 times. This year, the Government Work Report at the Two Sessions further takes standards as a key grasp for promoting industrial upgrading, regulating market order, ensuring people's livelihood and well-being, and supporting new quality productive forces.
The TC8 is committed to becoming an "industry service-oriented" standardization organization, strengthening the fit between standards and the industry, and building a solid cornerstone for industrial development. Next, the TC will focus on the core risk points of humanoid robot and embodied intelligence applications and active/passive technical protection measures, forming urgently needed mandatory safety guidelines and red line standards for the industry; at the same time, strengthening safety supervision through measures such as establishing a traceable mechanism, building an accident database, and creating a market access mechanism centered on "built-in safety".
Author | Yang Pengyue Editor | Qiu Jiangyong Art Editor | Malia Supervisor | Lian Xiaodong