A Galbot humanoid robot is pictured during the launch of
A Galbot humanoid robot is pictured during the launch of Galbot's unmanned robot convenience store in Hong Kong on August 31, 2026. Leung Man Hei/Getty Images

Rain and internet outages hit Hong Kong's first humanoid robot-run convenience stores as they opened Tuesday — but the day's most-shared moment came from the government's own finance chief losing an argument with a machine.

Financial Secretary Paul Chan tried to buy a back-to-school gift package for his child from the robot store manager at Kai Tak on Sunday, speaking Cantonese. The robot answered in Mandarin three times, asking if he wanted an introduction to its different robot types, according to unwire.hk's account of the launch ceremony. On the fourth attempt, it switched to Cantonese and handed over the gift set.

Three "Galbot Stores" — outdoor units in Hung Hom and Wan Chai, an indoor shop in Kai Tak — opened Tuesday, marking the first stores outside mainland China for Beijing-based embodied-AI firm Galbot, the South China Morning Post reported. Customers order from a screen, pay by Octopus, card, WeChat Pay, Alipay or UnionPay, and the wheeled humanoid robot retrieves the item. Prices for snacks, drinks and pineapple-bun and egg-tart-themed souvenirs range from HK$14 to HK$139.

Heavy rain and internet outages disrupted the opening, SCMP reported, though visitors it spoke to were positive about the robots despite the weather.

Galbot is a strategic investment of the Hong Kong Investment Corporation, the government's own investment arm, which signed its agreement with the company in July 2024. The Kai Tak launch was the third AI project HKIC has backed, and Chan told the ceremony the venture reflects Hong Kong's role as a testing ground for embodied intelligence, according to i-Cable.

One of the robot store managers, greeting passers-by in Cantonese, pitched itself as a minor celebrity: "Do not miss it – the big star who's appeared on the Spring Festival Gala is working right here!" Galbot's G1 robot did perform on this year's CCTV Spring Festival Gala alongside actors Shen Teng and Ma Li, handling tasks including cracking walnuts and folding clothes.

Galbot has already opened roughly 200 stores across some 50 mainland cities, chief strategy officer Zhao Yuli said at Monday's opening ceremony, and the company plans about 10 more Hong Kong locations in high-footfall districts over the coming years.

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