BYD's humanoid robot just leaked through the patent office

BYD sells more electric cars than anyone. It would now like to sell robots, and we know what one of them looks like because China's patent office published the drawings before BYD got around to a launch event.

The National Intellectual Property Administration published a design patent on October 9 for an "Embodied AI Robot," with BYD as the holder. The drawings show a two-armed, two-legged humanoid with articulated fingers, black and white panels, joints all over, and a smooth, featureless head with no display. The filing describes a machine that can walk, keep its balance and interact with its surroundings, for use in service, education and industrial settings.

Is this Xiao Di?

BYD said back in August it would unveil a humanoid, and it has teased one called Xiao Di: 1.61 meters tall, 58.5 kg, 31 degrees of freedom. The patented design looks a lot like it. BYD hasn't confirmed it's the production model, and a design patent only covers appearance. It says nothing about how well the robot works or when it ships.

BYD has been circling this market since 2022, when it set up a dedicated embodied AI research team. It invested in Agibot in 2023 and took a stake in Percibot in 2025. Chinese carmakers have the factories, the motor and battery supply chains, and the habit of shipping fast. If humanoids follow the path EVs took, the first cheap ones will roll out of plants like BYD's.

Sources: CarNewsChina, CnEVPost, Interesting Engineering.