Hong Kong Opens First Fully Autonomous Robot Retail Store

Hong Kong’s first fully autonomous robot-operated retail store officially began operations on September 1, marking a significant milestone in the city’s retail technology sector. Three Galbot Store locations launched simultaneously across Victoria Harbour at Hung Hom New Waterfront, Wan Chai Waterfront, and Kai Tak Sports Park’s Kai Tak Arena, according to Xinhua News.

A Humanoid Robot Store Manager

The stores are operated by Beijing Galaxy General Robotics, a mainland China embodied intelligence company, and represent the firm’s first physical retail location outside mainland China, as Yahoo Finance/infocast reported. The robot store manager, a humanoid named “Xiao Gai” based on the Galbot G1 model, operates fully autonomously—with no staff remote control—completing the entire process of receiving orders, picking items, and processing payments through its own perception and decision-making capabilities.

The G1 robot stands approximately 173 centimeters tall, weighs 85 kilograms, and features a 190-centimeter arm span. It uses a wheeled base rather than bipedal legs, combining traditional collaborative robot technology with autonomous mobile robot (AMR) systems. The robot is powered by an embodied intelligence large model called “Galaxy Star Brain,” which enables it to perceive its environment, understand customer needs, and execute the full ordering, picking, and payment workflow.

The stores sell beverages and Hong Kong-themed cultural products, including pineapple buns, egg waffles, and taxi model souvenirs. Customers can order via in-store tablets or through voice commands via microphones, with payment options including Octopus, credit cards, WeChat Pay, and Alipay.

Official Launch and First Transaction

Financial Secretary Paul Chan made the first purchase at the store on August 31 during the “Galaxy General Galbot Store Hong Kong Launch Ceremony and Robot Parade” held at Kai Tak Arena, buying a “back-to-school gift pack” for students, according to Xinhua News. The event was co-organized by the Hong Kong Investment Corporation Limited (HKIC), which introduced Galaxy General to Hong Kong after signing a strategic partnership agreement with the company in July 2024—HKIC’s third strategic investment project in its AI track.

During his demonstration, Chan encountered a brief communication challenge: his first three attempts in Cantonese were met with Mandarin responses before the robot successfully switched to Cantonese on the fourth attempt, as unwire.hk reported. Media tests at the event showed the full ordering process—from receiving the order to picking and delivering the item—completed in about one minute.

Hong Kong’s AI Ambitions

At the launch ceremony, Chan described the robot wave as having “revolutionary power,” noting that Hong Kong can play an important role by providing “a testable application field, a research ecosystem that can connect, and a capital chain that can support.” He cited market forecasts projecting 1 billion humanoid robots globally by 2050, driving an industry scale of $5 trillion, with China expected to account for 300 million robots.

Chan had previously highlighted the project in his official blog in June, writing that “the imminent debut of a humanoid robot store manager in Hong Kong points to an accelerating trend: artificial intelligence is entering people’s everyday lives in more tangible ways.” The Financial Secretary’s blog outlined Hong Kong’s broader AI strategy, including the “AI Training for All” program with HK$50 million in funding targeting approximately 50,000 participants, and the Sandy Ridge Data Facility Cluster expected to deliver 180,000 PFLOPS by 2032.

Clara Chan, CEO of HKIC, said the Galbot Store “demonstrates the collaborative value of technology, scenarios, and capital, which will create a greater ‘flywheel effect’ for Hong Kong’s financial and innovation ecosystem.” HKIC has invested in over 200 companies, with more than 70% of its mainland and local portfolio companies successfully expanding into overseas markets.

Company Background and Expansion Plans

Galaxy General, founded in May 2023, has raised more than $800 million across four funding rounds. In December 2025, the company completed a $300 million funding round led by China Mobile’s chain fund, valuing the company at approximately 20 billion RMB (about $3 billion). Wang He, founder and CTO of Galaxy General, said Hong Kong’s “open and inclusive market and rich application scenarios provide the best ‘testing ground’ and ‘showcase’ for cutting-edge technology.”

Wang added that the Hong Kong launch represents “an important step for the company from technology R&D to actual operations, from mainland China to the world,” projecting that by around 2028, robots will be able to understand more complex commands, take on various job positions, and gradually enter family life. The company plans to expand the Galbot Store capsule store model to 10 cities globally, with up to 100 stores.

The robot “Xiao Gai” won three gold medals at the 2nd World Humanoid Robot Sports Games in categories including household chores, catering, and supermarket operations, as noted by UDN/World Journal.

Public Reception and Outlook

The Hung Hom store was in a testing phase since at least July 2026, when public reactions were mixed. As unwire.hk documented, some social media users questioned whether a vending machine would be more practical than the robot, while others criticized the robot’s verbose dialogue as excessive. However, the official launch drew significant attention, with the Financial Secretary participating and live demonstrations showing the technology’s capabilities.

As Bastille Post reported, the launch event also featured a “Robot Parade” showcasing Galaxy General’s full robot lineup, including the newly unveiled bipedal humanoid “Galaxy Star Boy” and the heavy-duty industrial robot S1. The company expressed interest in collaborating with Hong Kong universities and research institutions to build an embodied intelligence laboratory.

With Hong Kong positioning itself as a hub for AI and robotics innovation, the Galbot Store launch represents a tangible step toward integrating embodied intelligence into daily urban life. The coming months will reveal whether this pioneering retail model gains broader consumer acceptance and whether the company’s ambitious global expansion plans materialize.