Hongqi Chain had initially invested around 2.8 million yuan and dedicated 16 months to the development of a robot-powered unmanned vending system. Nevertheless, the project encountered several challenges, including the instability of robotic grasping mechanisms when handling irregularly shaped products, the vulnerability of visual recognition systems to varying lighting conditions, and the difficulty in optimizing obstacle avoidance and data transmission in complex environments. These issues rendered the system unsuitable for large-scale commercialization. Consequently, the company redirected its efforts towards a 24-hour cloud-based monitoring service.

Currently, robotic retailing has emerged as a prominent application within the embodied artificial intelligence sector, with over 100 related locations established across more than 30 cities nationwide. These include standalone robotic retailing kiosks, robots operating in semi-open environments such as cafes and ice cream parlors, and robots in supermarkets primarily functioning as greeters and shopping assistants.

However, the capabilities of currently deployed retail robots are somewhat constrained. Most are limited to executing pre-programmed picking actions for standardized products, offering a narrow range of goods. Their operations still necessitate dedicated personnel for restocking and troubleshooting, with their primary value stemming from the novelty of interaction, emotional engagement, and customer attraction. The majority of these projects remain in the conceptual verification phase. The combined cost of a single robot and retailing kiosk nears one million yuan, making it challenging to recover costs through the sale of a limited volume of goods. These setups primarily serve as marketing and demonstration tools for embodied AI companies, strategically placed in high-traffic commercial and cultural tourism areas, yet they have not yet established a sustainable retail business model.

Industry experts contend that, given the current limitations in robot capabilities and the higher costs compared to human labor, robots are not yet poised to fully replace store clerks. The industry has not yet reached the critical point for widespread commercialization. Continuous reliance on closed testing environments for ongoing data collection and technological refinement will be essential to gradually enhance capabilities, such as handling non-standardized products. It is estimated that it will take an additional 2 to 5 years before robots can effectively replace human labor in retail settings.