By South China Morning Post | Created at 2025-03-10 06:04:40 | Updated at 2025-03-10 09:37:04
3 hours ago
A father in central China has wowed mainland social media, and even the country’s foreign ministry spokesperson, Mao Ning, for making sophisticated robot toys for his son.
“A hardcore dad engineered a robot toy for his son that is straight out of a sci-fi blockbuster,” Mao wrote on social media on February 25 while forwarding a video clip of Yao Cong and his robot creations.
Yao, a former architect living in Changsha of Hunan province, has spent a lot of time learning mechanical manufacturing and making robot toys for his son, now 10 years old, since he quit his job years ago, the Red Star News reported.
His account, @zaomengxiaoyi, on a major social media platform, has 1.2 million followers, shows dozens of self-made robot toys and joyful interactions between Yao and his son, nicknamed Xiaoyi.
These dazzling multifunctional inventions include a walking robot which can sweep the floor and put clothes into a washing machine.
Also among the creations, is a bag carried by his son connected to two machine arms that are able to move automatically and shoot plastic bullets in response to a signal from a special helmet the boy wears.
They have also created a mechanical snake which slithers in rivers, on sand and in marshes.
Another is a robot which can transform into a car in just seven seconds and a lifelike machine spider.
