THINKING ALOUD

When robots are helping, who is watching?

Humanoid robots will one day be ubiquitous, helpful – and threaten our privacy

    • XPeng intends to launch its humanoid robot, Iron, next year.
    • XPeng intends to launch its humanoid robot, Iron, next year. PHOTO: REUTERS
    Published Thu, Aug 13, 2026 · 07:00 AM

    FOR years, making sandwiches and picking my trousers up off the floor have been some of my regular household tasks. Soon, I will be able to outsource this to Iron, the humanoid robot that car company-turned-“physical AI” company XPeng intends to launch next year.

    An Iron will eventually clean people’s houses, chairman He Xiaopeng said at a media event on Jul 16, though businesses will get to buy them first when the robot launches next year.

    The appetite for this kind of device is not limited to my own household. By 2050, Morgan Stanley calculates, the market for humanoid robots will be worth US$5 trillion.