IROS 2025 Plenary Debate: Humanoids Will Soon Replace Most Human Workers: True or False?

Event

IROS 2025: Hangzhou China: 22 Oct 2025

Attended by 6000 robotics researchers from around the world

Watch the recording of the debate in YouTube here and in Bilibili here

Participants

• Ken Goldberg (UC Berkeley): Moderator

• Huichan Zhao (Tsinghua Univ): Against

• XingXing Wang (Founder, CEO/CTO: Unitree): For

• Andra Keay (Silicon Valley Robotics): Against

• Shigeki Sugano (Waseda Univ): For

• Yi Guo (Stevens Inst of Technology): Against

• Tamim Asfour (Karlsruhe Univ): For

• Yu Sun (U Toronto): Against.

Outcome

Audience first vote at beginning: (80% voted for False)

Panelists agreed to define "Soon" as within 25 years (before 2050)

Audience second vote at closing. (90% voted for False)

Conclusion

90% of roboticists agree that Humanoids will NOT replace most human workers in the next 25 years.

Special thanks to Hesheng Wang, Lijun Han, Michael Wang, and Frank Park for help in planning and coordinating.

Contact: Ken Goldberg, UC Berkeley (goldberg@berkeley.edu)