Is there a real person inside the Xiaopeng robot? Global netizens have caused a commotion, and the CEO on-site “stripped off his clothes” to prove himself

Xiaopeng made a big news on Science and Technology Day yesterday.

The all-new humanoid robot IRON stepped onto the stage with cat steps, and as a result… the whole world is asking the same question: Is there a real person hidden inside this thing?

The overseas Reddit discussion has reached its peak, and some people have directly opened it up:
This is a disguised person, don’t try to convince me

As far as we know, there may be someone hiding under this outfit

The domestic discussion is also sweeping the internet and trending on hot searches. Even readers of APPSO Today Morning Post have expressed doubts in the comment section:
Are you sure Xiaopeng isn’t an Ultraman with a leather suit

Xiaopeng looks like a real person walking

Seeing the “rumors” escalating, by noon today, He Xiaopeng couldn’t sit still and directly posted a video that went straight to the end. He immediately picked up the robot to refute the rumors.

In the video, He Xiaopeng stands next to IRON, explaining while getting his hands on it. As he speaks, he even lets the robot take two steps on site, and the buzzing sound of the cooling fan is clear and audible.
It can be seen that the smile on He Xiaopeng’s lips is almost unbearable, but he still insists on denying the rumors seriously.
Apart from He Xiaopeng himself, there are other ‘real hammers’.
Overseas technology blogger Fred Lambert visited Xiaopeng headquarters yesterday and later released a video on X platform, stating:
It moves autonomously in the exhibition hall without remote control or the ‘instant movement’ function. Perhaps it will be added in the next update

The domestic user “wutong Listens to the Rain” also specially posted a video of IRON robot walking catwalk on social media to refute rumors.

From this perspective, the controversy surrounding the ‘leather suit man’ is purely a mistake, as the high level of IRON’s biomimicry has made everyone momentarily incredulous.
So, what is the level of this IRON?
Let’s talk about hardware first. Xiaopeng is taking the biomimetic design route of “born from within” this time. The body has 82 degrees of freedom, which far exceeds the industry average.
Speaking of which, the appearance design of IRON, which is fully covered with flexible skin and highly biomimetic, bears some resemblance to the Protoclone V1 released by the Polish company Clone Robotics on February 21st.

Protoclone V1 also features a “musculoskeletal” anthropomorphic style: no facial design, highly precise anatomy, with over 200 degrees of freedom, 1000+muscle fibers, 500 sensors, hydraulic/pneumatic system simulating human muscles, and even equipped with a water-based “simulated sweating” cooling system.

In contrast, Xiaopeng’s IRON relies on fans for heat dissipation rather than “biomimetic sweating”. Although 82 degrees of freedom may not be as high as Clone’s 200+, it is sufficient to support practical applications and is more conducive to cost control in mass production.

Clone Alpha is a product developed and improved based on the technology and experience of Protoclone V1, mainly used in home scenarios, and pre installed with 16 skills including pouring drinks, cleaning floors, etc.

In addition, in terms of the most critical robotic arm for humanoid robots, IRON is equipped with agile bionic hands, each with 22 degrees of freedom and using the industry’s smallest harmonic reduction joint, achieving a 1:1 ratio with the human palm.
According to the introduction at the press conference, IRON can stably grab eggs, twist bottle caps, operate precision tools, and do household chores.

IRON also put effort into the body structure:

Personification spine: It can bend down and pick up objects like a human, not the rigid robot movements

Fully covered flexible skin: surface covered with tactile sensors, capable of sensing external contact

3D curved screen ‘face’: Head mounted screen can display emotional expressions
What’s even more interesting is that IRON supports high customization.
He Xiaopeng said that users can choose robots of different body types and genders according to their preferences. “Just like choosing a car, when buying a robot in the future, you can also choose a gender.” You can choose a chubby IRON, a thinner one, or even create your own customized version.

Hardware is the foundation, AI is the soul, and IRON is also equipped with three Turing AI chips, with an effective computing power of 2250TOPS. This is currently a highly advanced humanoid robot.

What’s even harder is that Xiaopeng’s first generation physical world model (second-generation VLA model) was run for the first time on IRON, constructing a synergistic combination of high-order big and small brain abilities called “VLT+VLA+VLM”. This combination of punches enables IRON to achieve advanced intelligence such as dialogue, walking, and interaction.

In addition, Xiaopeng also launched the application of all solid state batteries in the industry. Why not use it in the car first? He Xiaopeng explained that robots need to enter homes and offices with higher safety requirements, so they can be used as a testing platform.
So how does Xiaopeng plan to land this robot with full technological capabilities?
Regarding the commercialization path, this robot is expected to be mass-produced by the end of 2026, but interestingly, IRON will not go to factories or directly enter households in the initial stage.
He Xiaopeng said that the task of screwing screws in the factory requires the complex hands of the robots to wear out in just one month, making it less cost-effective than hiring someone; And the family environment is too complex, and safety is also a big issue.
Therefore, IRON will optimize advanced commercial scenarios such as tour guides, shopping guides, and receptions – perhaps next year we will see robot salespeople introducing new cars to me at Xiaopeng stores
In the future, Xiaopeng will also open the SDK, collaborate with global developers to build an ecosystem, and add the robot “Fourth Law” to IRON to ensure data security.
To be honest, the questioning incident of the ‘leather jacket man’ this time is considered an unexpected gain for Xiaopeng. The global tech community is discussing IRON, which is much more effective than spending money on advertising.
And this scene also makes people feel familiar.
Do you still remember at Tesla AI Day in 2021, Musk used a joke to have a real person wearing a tight fitting outfit dance on stage, pretending to showcase the concept of “Tesla Bot”, which was ridiculed by the whole world.
Four years have passed, and it’s another scene.
However, Tesla used to be a human robot, and now Xiaopeng is suspected to be a real robot.
These dramatic reversals indicate that there are always people who do not believe that the world is changing so quickly. Or, to put it another way, Chinese robots have truly stunned the whole world this time.