Iron

After Xpeng''s AI Day demo prompted speculation of a ''human in a suit,'' the company proved it was a robot. But new analysis suggests the bot on stage may have been its older ''Iron'' model, not the next-gen robot detailed in the keynote.

Xpeng's 2025 AI Day featured a new, highly realistic humanoid robot walking onstage. CEO He Xiaopeng detailed the 'human-like' design, a new VLT AI model, and a commercial strategy that avoids factories and homes—for now.

The EV maker's 2025 AI Day is expected to be the formal unveiling of the 'VLT' AI system, which the company claims will allow its 'Iron' humanoid robot to 'evolve into thinking.'

Xpeng CEO He Xiaopeng announced the company's next-generation IRON humanoid robot will feature a new Vision-Language-Task (VLT) AI system. The move is part of a broader strategy to shift from remote control to true autonomy, mirroring an industry-wide push for advanced, multi-modal AI brains in robotics.

Soft Robotics Podcast host Marwa ElDiwiny and engineer Scott Walter dissect the rotary-vs-linear actuator debate shaping today’s humanoid robots—explaining why most builders favor compact rotary joints while others bet on planetary-roller-screw cylinders.