AGIBOT opened an office in Hong Kong on 9 October 2026, located at Times Square in the Causeway Bay district. The Chinese manufacturer specialises in what it calls embodied AI (artificial intelligence software running on physical robots) and sees the office as a gateway to its international markets. It is meant to serve as a base for commercial collaboration, real-world robot applications and partnerships with the city’s universities and research institutes.
The opening ceremony brought together officials from the government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), including Lillian Cheong Man-lei, Under Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry, and Peter Yan King-shun, Director-General of the Office for Attracting Strategic Enterprises (OASES). According to AGIBOT, the event combined local opening customs with robot demonstrations: greeting guests, interaction and tea preparation.
AGIBOT’s international R&D headquarters in Hong Kong: a two-phase plan
According to AGIBOT’s press release, the company has been in talks with Hong Kong government departments, including the Innovation, Technology and Industry Bureau and OASES, since 2025. In May 2026, it co-organised a first embodied AI industry summit with the Hong Kong China Friendship Association, where it presented its plan for an international R&D headquarters and joint laboratories with local universities.
AGIBOT describes a two-stage rollout. The first phase covers setting up this international R&D headquarters and creating, with local universities, joint laboratories and an innovation centre linking industry, research and education. In a second phase, the company plans to expand its R&D team and invest, according to the press release, tens of millions of Hong Kong dollars to fund these laboratories and university partnerships.
Recruitment is already under way: AGIBOT says it is holding campus presentations, at the Chinese University of Hong Kong on 9 October, then at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology and the University of Hong Kong on 13 October.
For Jiang Qingsong, co-founder, co-president, chief operating officer and executive director of AGIBOT, Hong Kong’s international business environment, its services sector and its strengths in research and talent provide a solid foundation for developing embodied AI. He says the office should bring the company closer to commercial and research partners in overseas markets.
Robot trials planned in retail, hospitality and entertainment
AGIBOT intends to explore applications in the city’s services sector. The manufacturer names retail, hospitality and entertainment as areas in which to assess the role of its robots in customer interaction and day-to-day operations. It says it wants to work with businesses to develop uses based on their actual needs, with these projects then serving as reference cases for wider deployment.
Over the longer term, AGIBOT says it wants to examine opportunities linked to the development of the Northern Metropolis and to cooperation in the Hetao zone, including the creation of an industrial cluster dedicated to embodied AI.
Zhu Jie, partner, senior vice president and head of public and government affairs and brand at AGIBOT, describes Hong Kong as a bridge for introducing the company to an international audience. He says the aim is to build trust through the robots’ performance in real-world conditions.
Guest reception and tea-making robot demonstrations
The opening was accompanied by a product showcase. According to AGIBOT, the robots demonstrated guest reception, hospitality service and tea preparation, as well as object manipulation using dexterous robotic hands. The press release does not specify how autonomous these demonstrations were.
According to the company, AGIBOT’s catalogue covers humanoid robots, quadruped robots, dexterous manipulation systems and commercial cleaning solutions, for uses ranging from industry to services, research, education, tourism and entertainment.