Hangzhou-based Unitree, seen as a competitor to Tesla's Optimus, won multiple medals. Beijing-based X-Humanoid and Hong Kong-listed Shenzhen firm UBTECH also impressed. The Chinese government has targeted humanoid robots as a key future industry for the economy and Beijing has plans to build a world-class industry of humanoid robots by 2027.

But even before this month, China has been turning to high-profile events to showcase its tech, including a robot half-marathon and dancing humanoid robots during its Lunar New Year’s Eve TV gala, watched by hundreds of millions of people, according to The New York Times.