Indian professor faces backlash after taking credit for Chinese AI robot at AI summit

A controversy erupted at the India AI Impact Summit after a professor from Galgotias University was accused of presenting a Chinese-made robotic dog as an in-house innovation.

The incident involved a quadruped robot identified as the Unitree Go2, a commercially available device produced by Chinese robotics firm Unitree. 

According to reports, the robot was showcased at the university’s stall and was falsely introduced by a faculty member as a product developed at the institution’s Centre of Excellence.

Observers and technology enthusiasts soon recognized the device as an imported model widely sold internationally, fueling accusations that foreign technology had been misrepresented as original innovation at an event meant to highlight domestic innovations.

Government sources said the university was asked to vacate its stall after the video of the incident went viral. The episode was described by officials as an embarrassment at a high-profile summit aimed at promoting India’s technological credibility and attracting global investment.

The university later issued a clarification stating it had not built the robot and that it was merely a recently acquired teaching tool used for student experimentation. It called the controversy a “communication error” and denied intentionally claiming the machine as its own invention.