Yan Shi’s Mechanical Human

Yan Shi’s Mechanical Human (c. 1000–900 BCE): The Earliest Humanoid Automaton in Ancient China Long before electricity, modern robotics, or artificial intelligence, ancient China preserved a startling idea: a life-sized mechanical human that could move, perform, and convincingly imitate life. The figure—attributed to the engineer Yan Shi—was reportedly presented to King Mu of Zhou. Whether […]