NEW DELHI — A private Indian university was booted from a top artificial intelligence summit in New Delhi on Wednesday after one of its staffers displayed a commercially available robotic dog made in China, claiming it was the university's own innovation.
According to two government officials, Galgotias University was ordered to take down its stand at the summit a day after the university's professor of communications, Neha Singh, told state-run broadcaster DD News that robotic dog Orion was developed by the Centre of Excellence at the university.
Internet users, however, quickly identified the robot as the Unitree Go2, sold by China's Unitree Robotics with a starting price tag of $1,600 and used widely in research and education.
On Wednesday, Singh told reporters she never explicitly claimed the dog was university's own creation, but only an exhibit.
The incident was an embarrassment for host country India, the two government officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity as they were not authorized to speak to the media.
However, a statement from Galgotias said the university was ''deeply pained" and described the incident as a "propaganda campaign'' that could spread negativity and harm the morale of students working to innovate, learn and build their skills using global technologies.
It wasn't immediately clear if the university had removed its booth from the summit.
Still, the episode underscores the high stakes for India as it tries to cast itself as a global hub for AI and advanced manufacturing, drawing billions of dollars in investments while stressing credibility and local innovation.
