Galgotias University: Chinese robodog row at AI Impact Summit: Why is Galgotias University under fire? Explained | India News
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New Delhi: Galgotius University was asked to vacate its stall at the AI Summit Expo in Bharat Mandapam on Wednesday after a robotic dog displayed at its booth as an in-house invention was identified as a commercially available Chinese product, official sources said.The robot, identified as “Orion” by the university, was recognized by observers as the Unitree Go2 made by Chinese robotics firm Unitree. The incident quickly became a major controversy in India AI Impact Summit 2026Prime Minister Modi inaugurated a flagship AI event.
What about queues?
The robotic dog displayed at the university’s stall was identified as the Unitree Go2, a commercially available quadruped robot that sells for around Rs 2-3 lakh in India. Critics said the robot was presented at the summit as a university-made product, raising questions about showcasing imported technology at a national AI event meant to highlight indigenous innovation.After the scrutiny intensified, the AI summit’s Galgotius University pavilion’s electricity was also reportedly asked to evacuate the expo.
What is the queue trigger?
Prof. Neha Singh, while presenting the robot earlier, told DD News, “We are the first private university to invest over Rs 350 crore in artificial intelligence and we have a dedicated data science and artificial intelligence block in our campus. So Orion is developed by the Center of Excellence and as you can see, it can take all shapes and sizes.”“It’s quite mischievous. It’s quite mischievous and it can perform small tasks of surveillance, monitoring,” he added.
The opposition responded
The controversy drew strong reactions from the opposition. Congress X said: “The Modi government has made India the laughing stock of the world on AI. At the ongoing AI conference, Chinese robots are being displayed as our own. The Chinese media has mocked us. This is really embarrassing for India. More shamefully, Modi’s minister Ashwini Vaishnab is indulging in the same lie, promoting Chinese robots at India summits.““The Modi government has done irreparable damage to the country’s image – they have reduced AI to a joke – an area where we can be world leaders with our data power,” it added.Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi called the summit a “disorganized public relations show”. In a post on X, he said, “Instead of harnessing India’s talent and data, the AI Summit is a disorganized PR exhibition – Indian data for sale, Chinese products on display.”
University issued clarification
In the first statement, Galgotius University said it did not create or claim the robotic dog and emphasized its focus on student learning through exposure to advanced global technology.“Let’s be clear – Galgotius did not create this robodog, nor do we claim to. But what we are building is the mind that will soon design, engineer and manufacture such technology in India. Innovation has no boundaries. Shouldn’t even learn. We will continue to source the best technologies from around the world so that our students can study them, challenge them, improve them—and ultimately create world-class solutions from India for the world.“In a later statement, the university said concerns about “slander” against the university were misplaced.“We at Galgotius, faculty and students, are deeply saddened by the disinformation campaign against our university. We want to clearly state that robotic programming is part of our efforts to help students learn Al programming and develop and deploy real-world skills using tools and resources available globally, because Al talent development is the need of the hour.”Professor Neha Singh, representing the university, said the controversy had started due to unclear communication.“The debate happened because things were not clearly expressed. I take responsibility that maybe I didn’t communicate it properly, since it was done with a lot of energy and enthusiasm and very quickly, so I don’t usually come across as eloquent. Also, the purpose was not properly understood. An important point is that we cannot build robots. I told everyone that we introduced it to inspire our students to create something better than themselves. Our university contributes to creating future leaders by providing cutting-edge technologies in the field of AI and will continue to do so.”The summit’s focus on India’s AI ambitions was overshadowed after observers identified the robot as the Unitree Go2, a model sold by Chinese robotics company Unitree.
