Upper Intermediate (B2-C1) | Tech & Current Affairs
Watch the highlights from China's Lunar New Year Gala 2026. What do you think about the show?
Read the article about the Gala. Click the highlighted words to learn them!
On the first day of the Lunar New Year 2026, China's most-watched television programme did something unprecedented. More than a dozen humanoid robots performed sophisticated kung fu sequences at the CCTV Spring Festival Gala — waving swords, poles, and nunchucks alongside human child performers.
The performance was not just spectacular entertainment. It was a deliberate showcase of China's industrial ambitions. Four rising humanoid robot startups — Unitree Robotics, Galbot, Noetix and MagicLab — demonstrated their products to hundreds of millions of viewers in a single evening.
The most technically ambitious sequence imitated "drunken boxing" — a martial arts style involving wobbly, unpredictable movement. Pulling this off required innovations in multi-robot coordination and what engineers call "fault recovery" — the ability of a robot to get up after falling down.
Experts note that the Gala appearance is more than just good publicity. "Companies that appear on the gala stage receive tangible rewards in government orders, investor attention, and market access," said Georg Stieler, a technology consultant based in Asia.
This reflects China's broader strategy. President Xi Jinping has met the founders of five robotics startups in the past year — a level of attention comparable to that given to electric vehicle and semiconductor entrepreneurs. Beijing has placed robotics and AI at the heart of its next-generation manufacturing strategy, betting that automation will help offset the pressures of an ageing workforce.
Even Elon Musk has taken notice. "People outside China underestimate China," he said recently, acknowledging that Chinese companies are his biggest competitors in the humanoid robot race. Morgan Stanley projects that China's humanoid robot sales will more than double this year — from 13,000 to 28,000 units.
1. Why did robots performing at the Gala matter beyond entertainment?
2. What made the "drunken boxing" sequence technically impressive?
3. What does Elon Musk think about Chinese robotics companies?
Select a word from the bank, then click a gap to fill it in.
1. The robot performance was — nothing like it had ever been seen on the Gala stage.
2. The drunken boxing sequence required extraordinary between multiple robots.
3. Appearing on the Gala gives companies benefits like government contracts and investor attention.
4. China is using to deal with the challenges of an ageing population.
5. Robots may eventually replace part of China's manufacturing .
6. The Gala was used as a for China's most advanced technology companies.
🛰️ Why We Use the Passive
In news and technology writing, we often use the passive when the action is more important than who does it.
Form: subject + to be + past participle (+ by + agent, optional)
Choose the correct passive form for each sentence.
1. The robots ________ by Unitree Robotics, one of China's leading startups.
Past passive — who made them?
2. The performance ________ by hundreds of millions of people across China.
Past passive — who watched it?
3. Robotics and AI ________ at the heart of China's manufacturing strategy.
Present passive — current situation.
4. It is expected that humanoid robots ________ in greater numbers this year.
Future passive — a prediction.