Science & Technology

Robotic street beggar asking for 'recharge money' goes viral in China

By T.K. Randall
June 22, 2026

Image: AI-generated (Midjourney) The world is now so high-tech than even beggars are being replaced by robots... sort of.

A recent stunt on the streets of a city in China saw a humanoid Unitree G1 - made by Hangzhou-based Unitree Robotics - kneeling on the pavement begging for cash.

Accompanied by a donation bowl and a speaker that was putting out sad music, the robot displayed a note that read "desperately need electricity fees".

A QR code made it possible for people to donate online through WeChat payments.It seems that these robots - which cost a relatively low $13,500 - are starting to show up in all walks of life.

Within a few years, low-cost humanoid robots could become commonplace, especially given Elon Musk's push to manufacture his own Tesla robots en masse.

Could this be the beginning of the age of robots ?

We may not have much longer to wait to find out.


Source: Gadget Review

Tags: Robot, China