At the recent 2026 World Robot Conference's Volcano Engine Embodied Intelligence Technology and Application Forum, Li Bo, President and Product Manager of AIVA, delivered a keynote speech titled "AI First, Then the Car - AIVA and Volcano Engine Jointly Define, Design, and Build the AI Automotive Experience." During the conference's opening ceremony, Vice Minister of Industry and Information Technology Xin Guobin noted that global AI innovation is currently surging at an unprecedented pace. Intelligent robots, serving as a critical bridge for AI to transition from the digital realm into the physical world, are empowering countless industries and entering households at remarkable speed.
From Li Bo's perspective, beyond humanoid robots, automobiles offer another compelling answer for AI's expansion into the physical world. Vehicles represent one of the most important "bodies" for physical AI today, and they may achieve faster real-world deployment compared to robots. This advantage stems from several inherent conditions that most AI terminals lack. Firstly, cars possess a robust energy foundation. Onboard batteries ranging from tens to hundreds of kilowatt-hours can support high local computing power and edge-side large model deployment, enabling low-latency responses while processing large volumes of data locally, thereby enhancing data and privacy security.
Secondly, vehicles are equipped with comprehensive sensing and execution capabilities. Sensors such as cameras, microphones, and radar, along with complete mechanisms including seats, air conditioning, lighting, and chassis, function as the AI's eyes, ears, and limbs. This provides a more refined hardware foundation that integrates sensory input with physical execution. Thirdly, automobiles occupy an irreplaceable, long-term shared scenario that is often overlooked. From daily commutes and family pick-ups to weekend trips, users spend two to three hours inside their vehicles each day, with vehicle usage cycles extending over several years. Such high-frequency, periodic, and multi-scenario long-term companionship is something many other terminals cannot offer.
Li Bo thus asserts that automobiles will become one of the physical entities through which AI genuinely integrates into ordinary people's daily lives and coexists with humans over the long term. In developing AI-powered vehicles, AIVA's core philosophy is "AI defines the car: AI first, then the vehicle." During the product definition phase, AIVA clarifies what capabilities AI requires to understand and interact better with humans, then allows the entire vehicle to evolve around that framework of AI-driven capabilities. This transforms the car into an AI lifeform. As an example, AIVA has repurposed the vehicle's headlights, originally for illumination, into a "Luminous Gaze," designating them as the car's "eyes," where each lighting expression corresponds to real-world information perceived by the AI.
"Physical AI must not only possess the ability to act, but also make people feel its vibrant sense of life," Li Bo remarked. This shared vision has driven AIVA to collaborate deeply with Volcano Engine in exploring a new paradigm for AI automotive product definition. He emphasized that the two parties are not merely client and supplier, but genuine partners. They openly share insights on market trends and user scenarios, leveraging each other's strengths to jointly discuss AI hardware selection, review product requirements, and refine design proposals. Their organizational capabilities are also deeply aligned, fostering an AI-native structure where AI handles heavy foundational tasks, freeing human resources for areas demanding greater creativity and deep thinking.
Li Bo believes that whether humanoid robots or automobiles, both face a shared core challenge on the path toward physical AI: how embodied intelligence earns human trust. The "AI defines the car" philosophy offers a way forward - first determining how AI should understand and accompany people, and how to build that trust, then enabling the vehicle to emerge from this human-centric AI understanding, becoming a life companion for users. AIVA will continue exploring this path together with its partners.