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Zhejiang province exported 430 million yuan ($63.54 million) worth of intelligent bionic robots in the first half of 2026, accounting for about 60 percent of China's total exports in the category, according to Hangzhou Customs.

A quadruped robot made by Hangzhou-based Deep Robotics was recently deployed at Switzerland's largest nuclear power plant. The facility has operated for more than 40 years and has narrow corridors, dense equipment, and areas with radiation risks.

The robot can climb slopes of up to 45 degrees and move through gaps that are difficult for workers to access. Its thermal-imaging and acoustic sensors can detect leaks, abnormal temperatures, and unusual equipment noise, with data uploaded in real time.

During the first half, Zhejiang exported more than 1 billion yuan worth of robots to nearly 100 countries and regions, with the European Union as its largest market.

The province's high-tech product exports rose 22.5 percent year-on-year to 209.66 billion yuan, increasing their share of total exports to 9.3 percent.

Zhejiang has more than 2,000 artificial intelligence-related companies with combined revenue exceeding 300 billion yuan. Hangzhou alone has more than 700 robotics-related companies involved in research and development, component manufacturing, software algorithms, and applications.