Robot dog maker Juzhi Technology says customer purchase dispute settled by negotiation
In short
Hangzhou-based wheeled quadruped robot maker Juzhi Technology said on Oct. 6 that a dispute over a customer's purchase of four robot dogs has been handled through negotiation. A customer identified as Xiao had complained to Zhejiang TV that two 580,000-yuan "big dogs" were not delivered and two medium dogs had balance problems and locked software. Juzhi Technology said open cooperation must rest on clear authorization, core technology protection and compliance, especially for sensitive use scenarios, without giving terms of the settlement.
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Juzhi Technology, a Hangzhou-based maker of wheeled quadruped robots, said on Oct. 6 that a dispute over a customer's purchase of robot dogs had been properly handled through negotiation, according to a company statement reported by Jiemian and 36Kr. The company gave no terms of the settlement, and no comment from the customer on that statement appears in the documents. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
In the statement, the company said it supports customers carrying out secondary development and application innovation, and that open cooperation should be built on a clear authorization scope, protection of core technology and responsible product application. It added that for projects involving specific regions or sensitive application scenarios, it needs to define cooperation conditions and responsibility boundaries carefully, taking into account end use, the degree of technology openness and compliance requirements. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
The underlying complaint was reported by Zhejiang Television's 1818 Golden Eye programme and cited by Jiemian and cnBeta. According to that account, a company head surnamed Xiao ordered two P2 wheeled quadruped robots, described as "big dogs", on July 29 for a total of 580,000 yuan with delivery agreed by Aug. 10, and paid 406,000 yuan, or 70 percent of the price. The units were not delivered on time, with the company citing a need to upgrade the robots' motors, the report said. On Aug. 28, with his company short of machines, Xiao added two 好奇者S01 medium robot dogs at 160,000 yuan each, which were delivered soon after, according to cnBeta. [ 1 , 3 ]
One medium dog was sent to the United States for oilfield inspection work and the other was unpacked in Wenzhou, where it was found to stand with unbalanced legs, cnBeta reported. Manufacturer staff spent an hour trying to fix it on site without success and said it would need to return to the factory for about a week of repair, according to the report. More significantly for the buyer, the report said, neither medium dog allowed commercial secondary development: the underlying development permissions were not open, the system was locked, and when a development key was requested the company asked the buyer to first sign a secondary-development liability waiver limited to research and teaching scenarios. Xiao said his company bought the robots to fit gimbals, cameras and a legal AI model for park patrols and home security products it intends to sell, which is commercial use, so he could not sign it. [ 1 , 3 ]
The two sides remain at odds on responsibility. A Juzhi Technology official described as a CMO assistant surnamed Zhao said the contract did not explicitly provide for secondary development and that the company is responsible only for the quality of the robot body, with responsibility arising from secondary development not resting with it, according to cnBeta. Xiao said sales and advertising had promised secondary development was possible, and asked for a refund of the two big dogs plus contractual penalty payments, with the medium dogs' quality issues to be determined by a professional testing body. [ 1 , 3 ]
A staff member at the Xiasha market supervision office in Hangzhou's Qiantang district told reporters that the big dogs' delay stemmed from poor communication over the motor upgrade, and that the medium dog's leg balance problem had in fact been repaired, cnBeta reported. The two sides remained deadlocked over the rights and responsibilities for secondary development, mediation failed, and the office suggested resolving the matter through legal channels, according to the same report. [ 3 ]
Public information cited in the reports says Juzhi Technology was founded in early 2025 in Hangzhou, is located in the Qiantang district robot valley, and focuses on the development and application of wheeled quadruped robots. [ 1 , 3 ]
Why it matters
The case turns on how far robot hardware makers let buyers modify and resell their machines, a question that matters to any company buying quadruped robots for commercial products. The documents show the two sides ended at odds over secondary development rights, with a local regulator suggesting the courts after mediation failed, so similar buyer-supplier disputes over development access may follow the same route.
Key facts
- Juzhi Technology said on Oct. 6 that the customer purchase matter has been properly handled through negotiation. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- Juzhi Technology said it supports customers' secondary development and application innovation, but that open cooperation should rest on clear authorization scope, core technology protection and responsible product application. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- The company said projects involving specific regions or sensitive application scenarios require it to define cooperation conditions and responsibility boundaries carefully, based on end use, degree of technology openness and compliance requirements. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- According to the 1818 Golden Eye report cited by the outlets, customer Xiao ordered two P2 wheeled quadruped "big dogs" on July 29 for a total of 580,000 yuan with delivery due by Aug. 10, and paid 406,000 yuan, or 70 percent. [ 1 , 3 ]
- Xiao later added two 好奇者S01 medium robot dogs at 160,000 yuan each on Aug. 28, which were delivered quickly. [ 3 ]
- One medium dog was sent to the United States for oilfield inspection work and the other was unpacked in Wenzhou, where it was found to stand with unbalanced legs; staff could not fix it on site and said it needed a week of factory repair. [ 3 ]
- Xiao said the medium dogs had no access to underlying development permissions and that signing the secondary-development liability waiver would limit use to research and teaching, while his company needed commercial use for park patrol and home security products. [ 1 , 3 ]
- A Juzhi Technology official described as a CMO assistant surnamed Zhao said the contract did not specify secondary development, and that the company is responsible only for the robot body's quality. [ 3 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- Juzhi Technology issued a statement on Oct. 6 saying the customer purchase matter had been handled through negotiation. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- The statement said open cooperation should be based on a clear authorization scope, protection of core technology and responsible product application. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- The statement said projects involving specific regions or sensitive application scenarios require the company to define cooperation conditions and responsibility boundaries carefully. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
Still unclear
- What the negotiated settlement actually provides, and whether the customer agrees with the company's account. The company statement gives no terms and no confirmation from the customer appears in the documents.
- The customer's complaint details — the payments, the undelivered P2 units, the leg imbalance and the locked development permissions — rest on one television report. Both Jiemian and cnBeta attribute these details to the same Zhejiang TV 1818 Golden Eye report, so they are a single original source.
- Whether the medium robot dog's leg balance problem has been fixed. The customer side said it needed a week of factory repair, while a Xiasha market supervision office staff member said the problem had been repaired; the documents do not resolve the difference.
What local media are saying
Timeline, local time
- Jiemian publishes a report on Juzhi Technology's Oct. 6 statement and the customer's complaints from the 1818 Golden Eye television report. [ 1 ]
- 36Kr publishes a summary of the Juzhi Technology statement crediting Jiemian. [ 2 ]
- cnBeta publishes a detailed account of the dispute, the company response, the customer's position and the market supervision office's account. [ 3 ]