China’s first robot doctoral student, nicknamed “Xueba 01,” has arrived at the Shanghai Theatre Academy with its acceptance letter and received a student ID during a special registration event. The academy has developed a tailored curriculum to help the robot learn both engineering and performance.

Core technical courses include perception and cognitive modeling, language generation and interaction, and embodied control and motion expression. Arts modules cover stage role-play, artistic style simulation, and emotional expression. The academy says Xueba 01 will use AI to study traditional performance gestures, facial makeup expressions, and stage combat techniques.

Xueba 01 stands 1.75 metres tall and weighs 32 kilograms. It wears silicone skin to mimic subtle human expressions, has cameras embedded in its eyes to capture audience reactions, and uses ultra-light, tendon-like bionic structures. When fully charged, it can walk continuously for six hours — a runtime suited to intense stage work.

The research project aims to build a theory and practice of “robot cross-media art,” treat robots as learning subjects, and explore the digital preservation and transmission of traditional performance styles.