Telegraph 18 May 2025 

1  Robots are the new soldiers in China’s tech race against the West

Beijing’s early push for bot dominance should sound alarm bells in America and Europe  

See robots cavorting and inactive images! 

source

2   Paragraphs of interest:

 

  1. For decades, walking robots have been a feature of science fiction without ever becoming a reality. 
  2. So when Elon Musk first revealed plans for Tesla’s humanoid “Optimus” robot three years ago, his vision was met with understandable scepticism.
  3. He didn’t exactly help his case when showcasing the project by appearing onstage alongside a human pretending to be a robot.
  4. As technology news site The Verge wrote at the time: “Don’t overthink it: Elon Musk’s Tesla Bot is a joke.”
  5. Four years later, however, humanoid robots are no longer just a punchline.
  6. Social media is now awash with videos of advanced Chinese robots completing an array of tasks, whether that be tap-dancing or running half-marathons.

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2.2

Robot revolution

  1. Musk’s ambitious timelines are legendary in the tech world, but he is not alone in targeting a robot revolution.
  2. For example, Germany’s Neura raised €120m (£100m) in January to develop its own two-legged robot called 4NE-1.
  3. However, it is China where the technology is forging ahead, as dozens of start-ups are vying to build two-legged robots that can work in factories or as human helpers.
  4. Given their potential capabilities, this is no doubt a source of concern for the West.
  5. Robotics is “definitely becoming a geopolitical race,” says Reuben Scriven, a robotics and automation researcher at Interact Analysis, who claims: “It is likely that humanoids will see much faster adoption in China.”

2.3

Capability and cost

  1. Over the years, plenty of humanoid bots have appeared as marketing gimmicks at tech trade shows, but in practice, they have been clunky and somewhat useless.
  2. Yet recent advances in artificial intelligence (AI) software and hardware design have brought highly advanced humanoid robots closer to reality.
  3. For example, Musk’s Optimus has shown off increasingly dexterous movements that could allow it to do jobs usually reserved for humans.
  4. Then follows a robot jigging about.

2.4  

Beijing - and UK at 5

  1. Beijing has also since set up a dedicated robotics venture fund worth more than £100bn.
  2. In some quarters, they believe advanced humanoids could increasingly plug gaps in China’s ageing labour market.
  3. Currently, China has 470 robots in its workforce per 10,000 people, the third highest in the world behind only Singapore and South Korea.
  4. Searching the UK situation we find: 
  5. In 2023, the UK had 111 robots per 10,000 manufacturing workers, according to the International Federation of Robotics (IFR). This figure is below the global average of 141, and the UK ranks 24th in the world for robot density. source
  6. China to Invest 1 Trillion Yuan in Robotics and High-Tech Industries

 

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Telegraph 7 May 2025 

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1  UK Councils can save money

1    Councils could save households £325 a year by using artificial intelligence

  1.  Tech companies will be required to tell musicians, artists and newspapers when they use their material to train AI models under an amendment backed by the House of Lords. more

  2. The Government suffered a defeat on Monday 14 May 2025 from peers who argued that its Data Bill did not do enough to protect creatives from “theft” by AI firms. more

  3. The amendment, which will now return to MPs for consideration, would force tech companies to strike licensing deals with content creators to use their work or face legal action. more

  4. The debate came after more than 400 artists and industry groups, including Sir Elton John, Robbie Williams and Shirley Bassey, signed a letter urging Sir Keir Starmer to do more to protect the arts. more

  5. Lord Black, the deputy chairman of the Telegraph Media Group, said the “centuries-old right” to copyright protection was in danger because the Government was “legalising theft” and allowing AI to “plunder someone else’s work and profit from it”. more

     

 2   More

  1. Councils could save households £325 a year by using artificial intelligence, the Tony Blair Institute (TBI) has said.

  3. Deploying AI in local government could improve productivity, saving the taxpayer at least £8 billion across England and Wales.

  5. A report by the institute said AI could be used to clear backlogs across public services and ensure that potholes were fixed more quickly. more

  7. The study comes a week after another report by the Tony Blair Institute into net zero caused rows in the Labour Party.

  9. The former prime minister warned that plans to phase out fossil fuels were doomed to failure, but later had to row back after Downing Street intervened.

Telegraph 7 May 2025 

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