BYD executive vice president Stella Li has outlined plans to deploy humanoid robots in every one of the Chinese automaker’s car showrooms, part of an ambition she says could be realised within the next one or two years. Li shared the BYD humanoid robot showroom vision during an interview with Business Insider at the Cannes Lions festival, conducted by editor in chief Jamie Heller.
‘My goal is to bring two or three robots to every single store. They can explain to the customer, they can have fun, they can even show the car, demonstrate the car,’ Li said.
Li was clear that robots would not displace human staff entirely. ‘We still need the people, but now with robotics we can make our service better,’ she said, framing the technology as a supplement to, rather than a replacement for, the emotional connection a human salesperson provides.
BYD humanoid robot showroom ambition backed by software advantage
Li pointed to BYD’s automotive software expertise as a foundation for its robotics push. CnEVPost reported Li saying: ‘Automotive software is complex, and porting it into robots is very easy for us.’ She also indicated that if humanoid robots enter households, BYD intends to sell them through its existing dealer network.
The company is building its humanoid robot in-house but has left open the option of sourcing machines from rivals if needed. BYD is also investing in industrial automation, with Li suggesting fully automated, human-free facilities are within reach. ‘I think in the next three to five years there will be a lot of revolution here,’ she said. ‘Maybe we can start to have some manufacturing where there are no human beings, and then the robot will run the facility.’
A fast-growing market and a direct rivalry with Tesla
BYD’s move puts it on a collision course with Tesla, its longstanding rival in electric vehicles. Tesla is planning to begin production of its Optimus humanoid robot this summer, with chief executive Elon Musk positioning it as potentially the company’s biggest product ever.
The global humanoid robot market is expected to grow from $3 billion in 2025 to $28 billion by 2030, according to Morgan Stanley estimates cited in the original reporting. Those are global figures. For China specifically, CNBC reported that Morgan Stanley doubled its China shipment forecast for a second time in 2026, projecting 50,000 units to ship in China this year, nearly double a previous projection of 28,000 units. Morgan Stanley put the value of China’s humanoid robot market at $2 billion in 2026, rising to $15 billion by 2030.
The Chinese market is already moving fast on the supply side. The Robot Report, citing Omdia data, reported that Shanghai AgiBot led global shipments in 2025 with more than 5,100 units and a 39% share of the global market. Total worldwide shipments reached roughly 13,000 units in 2025, more than five times the 2024 level.
Chinese companies collectively accounted for more than 80% of all humanoid robot shipments last year, according to Omdia. Unitree and UBTech are among the dominant players, with BYD now entering a sector where domestic rivals are well established.
Investment appetite behind the sector is substantial. China recorded over 610 robotics investment deals in the first nine months of 2025, according to a global humanoid robots market report compiled by industry analysts, as companies including Tesla, BYD, AgiBot, and Agility Robotics scaled production toward tens of thousands of units annually.
Li acknowledged that the technology still has hurdles. More efficient energy systems and better AI processing are needed before home robots can become a practical reality, she said. Most deployments to date have been in controlled factory and warehouse environments, where conditions are more predictable than in homes or retail settings.
For BYD, the showroom is the first public test of the ambition. MarketsandMarkets projects the global humanoid robot market growing at a compound annual rate of 39.2% through 2030, a trajectory that gives Li’s one-to-two-year timeline for showroom-ready robots a plausible, if tight, window to hit.