Japan Airlines and GMO AI & Robotics have launched what they call Japan's first humanoid-robot demonstration at a major airport, deploying Chinese Unitree G1 humanoids at Haneda Airport to take on physically demanding ground tasks. The experiment runs through 2028 and is squarely aimed at the country's worsening shortage of ramp and cabin labour.
Three jobs, two robots, one big bet
Two Unitree G1 platforms have been deployed at the airline's main hub for baggage loading, container transport between sorting areas and the apron, and cabin cleaning. Each robot stands about 130 cm tall, weighs roughly 35 kg, moves at up to 2 m/s and runs for about two hours on a full charge — a profile that JAL says is well-suited to short, high-repetition tasks where human workers face physical strain.
Why Haneda
Haneda Airport handles more than 60 million passengers each year and is now JAL's proving ground for what a partly robotic ramp could look like by the end of the decade. Inbound tourism to Japan keeps setting records while the working-age population continues to shrink, leaving ground-handling crews chronically short. GMO AI & Robotics is buying Unitree platforms reportedly at around 5,400 per unit and positioning itself as a domestic integrator and lifecycle operator for them.
From CES showpiece to airport floor
Unitree's G1 was one of the most-watched humanoids of the past year, partly because of its low price point relative to U.S. competitors. The JAL deployment turns it from a research toy into a tool for real customer operations, alongside other Asia-Pacific pilots emerging from carriers, retailers and logistics players. It also lands as Nvidia and Unitree unveil the H2 Plus for academic research, and as Japanese startup Atom raises a ¥3B seed for industrial bipedal humanoids.
What success looks like
JAL is tracking task completion rate, time savings and worker injury reduction over the trial, with the option to expand into other Japanese airports if results hold up. If it works, ground operations could become one of the first large commercial categories where humanoids meaningfully offset labour shortages instead of just augmenting humans.
Reporting based on coverage from Japan Airlines, CNBC, eWeek and Future Travel Experience.