After Chinese Robodog Row At AI Impact Summit, Galgotias University Apologises, Says Representative Was 'Ill-Informed'

New Delhi: After Galgotias University faced heat over the Chinese make of its robodog at the India AI Impact Summit, it issued an unconditional apology saying that their representative was “ill-informed”.

“We at Galgotias University, wish to apologise profusely for the confusion created at the recent Al Summit. One of our representatives, manning the pavilion, was ill-informed. She was not aware of the technical origins of the product and in her enthusiasm of being on camera, gave factually incorrect information even though she was not authorised to speak to the press,” the university clarified in a press release.

“We request your kind understanding as there was no institutional intent to misrepresent this innovation. Galgotias University remains firmly committed to academic integrity, transparency, and responsible representation of our work. Understanding the organisers sentiment we have vacated the premises,” the statement read.

Earlier in the day, organisers at the India AI Impact Summit were forced to remove a stall put up by the university, after representatives exhibited a robotic dog imported from China, but claimed that it was their original creation.

The row erupted when a video of a university professor presenting a four-legged robot named “Orion” at the summit went viral. In the clip, the faculty member described the robot as an innovation developed by the university’s Centre of Excellence. However tech enthusiasts soon identified it to be the Chinese-made Unitree robodog and not an Indian creation.

Visuals from the expo showed that power had cut off to the university stall on Wednesday, and its staffers were seen packing up. Authorities has cited concerns about misleading information and said that the episode could blow up to be a “national embarrassment” for the country.

The university, facing the heat, had then issued a clarification saying that it had never claimed to have manufactured the robodog and said that the unit was procured from abroad so that students can be given hands-on exposure to advanced technologies. “We have not built this robodog, nor have we claimed to do so,” a university spokesperson had said.

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