On its 10th anniversary, Fourier aims to introduce humanoid robots into the health and rehabilitation care scenario | The Frontline

Text | Wang Fangyu

Editor | Su Jianxun

Commercialization is undoubtedly the most concerning issue for current embodied intelligence enterprises. From industrial production to guided tours and receptions, from power inspections to high-risk operations, manufacturers are constantly exploring new application scenarios for humanoid robots in various industries.

On May 9th, Fourier Intelligence, a unicorn in the field of embodied intelligence, held its first Embodied Intelligence Ecosystem Summit. At the summit, Fourier Intelligence and Shanghai International Medical Center announced that they will carry out comprehensive cooperation in areas such as the construction of application standards for embodied intelligence robots in the rehabilitation medical scenario, co - creation of rehabilitation programs, and scientific research breakthroughs, and jointly build the first domestic demonstration base for embodied intelligence rehabilitation.

Gu Jie, the founder and CEO of Fourier Intelligence, shared his experiences and insights during the ten - year entrepreneurship and proposed the core strategy for the next decade: "Based on health and rehabilitation, focus on interaction, and serve people." Gu Jie said that the application in the medical rehabilitation scenario is the foundation of Fourier Intelligence. The goal of Fourier Intelligence is to "create human - centered embodied intelligence" and bring embodied intelligence technology into hospitals, communities, families, and a wide range of scenarios.

Public information shows that Fourier Intelligence was founded in 2015 and has long been focused on medical rehabilitation robots in the early stage. In 2023, Fourier Intelligence shifted from focusing on dedicated rehabilitation robots to building a general robot technology platform and launched its first general humanoid robot, GR - 1.

As of now, Fourier Intelligence has released two self - developed general humanoid robots in the GRx series, with a cumulative shipment of hundreds of units. The downstream application scenarios include AI R & D companies, factory manufacturing, reception services, and dangerous goods protection.

Is health and rehabilitation a suitable scenario for the implementation of embodied robots?

Zhang Shaoting, the CEO of SenseTime Healthcare, said during the forum session of the Embodied Intelligence Ecosystem Summit that the pure medical scenario is relatively limited, while the fields of health, rehabilitation, and elderly care are broader. Currently, there is a shortage of professional nursing staff, and there are commercialization opportunities for embodied intelligence in these scenarios.

Li Jing, a professor at the Shanghai Key Laboratory of Intelligent Manufacturing and Robotics at Shanghai University, mentioned that in the rehabilitation scenario, interaction is emphasized. For example, in scenarios such as medical companionship, embodied robots equipped with general large - scale models can provide emotional value.

At the same time, the implementation of embodied intelligence in the medical and health - care field also faces problems in technology, clinical practice, and supervision. For example, products need medical licenses.

Niu Chuanxin, the deputy director of the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine at Ruijin Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, said that rehabilitation robots have evolved from the past to the era of embodied intelligence humanoid robots. Currently, they are in the critical connection stage of clinical application and may encounter various problems such as the robot being in good condition but having limitations in clinical use, which involve the control of indications and the fine - tuning of treatment plans.

Interaction and emotional warmth are the special features that distinguish the health - care scenario from traditional industrial scenarios and some other scenarios.

"Cognitive training, speech function training, and the restoration of daily living functions all require interaction with people, which is also the core requirement of rehabilitation," Gu Jie said. "In the health - care scenario, in terms of interaction performance, robots need to have perception capabilities, be able to perceive the environment, human needs, and surrounding emotions, then use the current large - scale model AI technology to think, and finally make corresponding feedback."

Gu Jie believes that in the future, humanoid robots will take different forms to meet the needs of rehabilitation treatment and interaction. After rehabilitation, there are also functions such as companionship and cognitive training, and these are areas where embodied intelligence can shine in the future.

Fourier Intelligence started with rehabilitation robots and has ten - year accumulation in the medical rehabilitation field, and has long been engaged in human - machine interaction work. In Gu Jie's view, the essence of humanoid robot technology is to solve the core proposition of "how humans and machines get along", which is naturally related to Fourier Intelligence's technological advantages.

At the recent Global Rehabilitation Summit, Fourier Intelligence also took the lead in initiating the "Initiative for the Development of Embodied Intelligence Rehabilitation Technology" to further promote the technological application of embodied intelligence in the health - care scenario.

However, the implementation of embodied intelligence robots in the health - care scenario is still in the early exploration stage as a whole.

Gu Jie pointed out that there are two key points in the implementation process of health - care robots. One is effectiveness, that is, it can truly treat diseases and produce clinical effects for hospitals; the other is safety, and the products must have reliable medical - grade quality. Currently, the demand for health - care robots often comes from the forward - looking ideas of communities, hospitals, and experts. This requires the joint efforts of professional doctors, engineers, and scientific research institutions to collaborate and innovate to build an embodied intelligence ecosystem.