Galgotias University was on Wednesday asked to vacate its pavilion at the India AI Impact Summit following a controversy over the display of a made-in-China robotic dog that critics alleged was being passed off as an in-house innovation.
The action came a day after the issue triggered a storm, with the government making it clear that exhibitors must showcase only their own work. IT Secretary S Krishnan said authorities did not want any misleading displays at a platform meant to highlight genuine technological advancements. “We do not want such exhibits to continue,” he said, confirming that organisers had asked the university to vacate its stall.
The controversy erupted on Tuesday after Neha Singh, a communications professor at the university, showcased the quadruped robot, named Orion, and said it had been developed by the Centre of Excellence at the university.
As videos of the demonstration went viral, social media users and tech enthusiasts pointed out that the machine resembled commercially available quadruped robots manufactured by Chinese firm Unitree Robotics, widely used in research and education globally.
Amid the backlash, Galgotias University issued an apology for the “confusion” caused. A university spokesperson said one of its representatives at the pavilion had been “ill-informed”.
“She was not aware of the technical origins of the product and, in her enthusiasm for being on camera, gave factually incorrect information… There was no institutional intent to misrepresent the innovation,” the spokesperson said.
Earlier, talking to The Tribune at the pavilion, a university official claimed that the matter had been clarified. However, soon after, staff and students were seen vacating the pavilion premises after power supply to the stall was cut off.
Before the controversy broke, the robot dog had emerged as one of the summit’s biggest crowd-pullers. The four-legged machine seen walking, gesturing and interacting with visitors drew heavy footfall and social media traction, quickly turning into a showstopper exhibit.
The episode also triggered a political reaction, with the Opposition Congress alleging that showcasing Chinese robots as Indian innovation had damaged the country’s global technological image. In a post on X, the party said, “The Modi government has made a laughing stock of India globally. In the summit, Chinese robots are being displayed as our own. The Chinese media has mocked us. This is truly embarrassing for India.”
It also accused Union minister Ashwini Vaishnaw of promoting China’s robots at the Indian summit. Adding to the party’s response, Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, in a post on X, said, “Instead of leveraging India’s talent and data, the AI summit is a disorganised PR spectacle… Indian data up for sale, Chinese products showcased.”
Government officials, meanwhile, stressed that the summit’s purpose was to showcase authentic innovation and that misinformation or plagiarism could not be encouraged. Krishnan underlined that while the event functioned as an exhibition platform built on good faith, any misleading ownership claims were problematic.
