Major Chinese e-commerce platform JD.com announced on Monday that it will host what it described as the world's first auction of humanoid robots during its annual 618 shopping festival, marking a new milestone in the commercialization of artificial intelligence (AI) and advanced robotics, the Securities Times reported.
A humanoid robot works at a convenience store in Haidian District of Beijing, capital of China, April 22, 2026. (Photo: Xinhua)
JD.com announced the plan at the launch event of its promotion campaign for 618 shopping festival of 2026, saying that the auction will be part of a broader series of special sales and promotional activities running throughout the shopping period.
Industry observers said that the event could draw interest from technology companies, research institutions and robot collectors seeking early access to next-generation machines, although the company has not yet disclosed the full list of robot models or starting prices.
The company told the Global Times on Monday that JD Logistics plans to deploy 3 million robots, 1 million autonomous vehicles, and 100,000 drones over the next five years. Meanwhile, JD Retail plans to help robot brands achieve cumulative sales of more than 10 billion yuan ($1.47 billion) in 2026, while shortening product launch cycles by 30 percent.
Dai Wenjun, head of JD's JoyInside platform for robotics, said that the platform is expected to connect with more than 10 million terminal devices in 2026, with robot brands including Unitree Robotics and Noetix Robotics already integrated into the platform.
Apart from making humanoid robots more familiar to Chinese consumers, localities are also making efforts to deploy more humanoid robots in factories.
For example, Shanghai on Sunday revealed plans to accelerate the real-world deployment of AI and humanoid robots. Tang Wenkan, director of the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization, said that the city aims to deploy 100,000 humanoid robots in factories by the end of the 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-30) period and raise AI agent adoption among large industrial enterprises to more than 80 percent.
Tang said that the city will fully implement an "AI Plus" action plan to drive industrial transformation through AI and help build a new form of intelligent economy.
China has become one of the world's most active markets for robotics development, supported by government policy, strong manufacturing capabilities and rapid growth in the AI sector. The moves reflect China's increasingly complete robotics supply chain and its efforts to bring cutting-edge technologies to market, Pan Helin, a member of the Expert Committee for the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, told the Global Times on Monday.
"Humanoid robots, once largely limited to laboratories and demonstrations, are now being used in retail, logistics, manufacturing, healthcare and public service scenarios," Pan said, adding that the auction could create a new commercial channel for robot producers and help accelerate public acceptance of humanoid robots as practical products rather than futuristic concepts.