CATL: Galbot’s Humanoid Robot on the Battery Production Line

Beijing based tech company Galbot has deployed its S1 robot on CATL’s production lines for module and battery pack manufacturing. 

CATL says “it will directly replace human workers" in high-intensity processes.

The robot itself is powered by battery manufacturer CATL’s batteries. 

The two companies have also signed a “global strategic cooperation agreement” that focuses on upgrading smart manufacturing lines and accelerating the large-scale application of AI powered humanoid robots. 

According to the World Robotics 2025 Report from the International Federation of Robotics (IFR), 54% of annual industrial robots installed worldwide were deployed in China. 

Galbot’s industrial robot

The companies are collaborating on the Galbot S1, a heavy-duty humanoid robot.

It is the world's first AI humanoid robot in regular operation that is powered by CATL batteries.

CATL says the S1 robot that has been deployed on its production lines has a dual-arm 50 kg payload capacity, vision-only centimetre-level precision positioning and 360-degree omnidirectional obstacle avoidance. 

The robot is powered by CATL battery cells which feature cathodes with particle-size grading technology, low-lithium-consumption anodes and a “bionic self-healing electrolyte”, achieving a cell failure rate at the parts per billion  level. 

The Chinese battery manufacturer says it delivers up to eight hours of continuous operation while ensuring extended service life and a high level of safety for production line operations.

Galbot S1 has been deployed on CATL’s intelligent production lines, performing extended autonomous operations in module and battery pack manufacturing. 

In a press release, CATL says it will directly replace human workers in high-intensity processes such as material handling and picking.

The company says it significantly reduces physical workload for shop floor workers.

What is Galbot? 

Galbot is a startup established in 2023, partially funded by CATL. It has quickly become a key player in China’s humanoid robotics market and has a partnership with Bosch Group to advance the industrial deployment of embodied AI. 

In a 2025 interview with China Daily, Zhang Zhizheng, Co-Founder of Galbot, said: “I believe a commercial rollout of humanoid robots in factories is achievable within two years.”

Speaking about overcoming industry barriers in data collection, he said: “We've enabled skills mastered in virtual environments to transfer seamlessly into novel real-world contexts with minimal semantic relabelling.”

China’s robotics installations

The IFR’s World Robotics 2025 Report says that China is the world's largest market for industrial robots. 

The latest figures show that 295,000 industrial robots have been installed, the highest annual total on record.

Domestic robot installations are increasing too, according to the IFR, for the first time, Chinese manufacturers have sold more than foreign suppliers in their home country.

Domestic market share climbed to 57%, up 28% over the previous decade.