Xiaomi has recruited Zach Lu Zeyu, a former engineer from Tesla's Optimus project, to lead its dexterous hand research and development. This move bolsters the company's robotics division amid aggressive hiring for advanced manipulation technologies. Lu's expertise in tactile sensing and grasping aligns with Xiaomi's long-term ambitions in humanoid robotics.
Zach Lu Zeyu, who holds a doctorate in mechatronics, robotics, and automation engineering from the National University of Singapore obtained in 2023, has joined Xiaomi's robotics team as Head of the Dexterous Hand. Prior to this, Lu spent more than two years at Tesla starting in 2023 as an intern robotics engineer, advancing to a full-time role in 2024. At Tesla, he contributed to the Optimus robot's dexterous hand development, including tactile sensors, dexterous grasping and manipulation, hand structure design, and integration of 'tactile skin' for factory scenarios. His work also covered analog/digital circuits, PCBA layout, data collection, and signal processing.
Lu announced his move on social media, expressing hopes to 'accelerate the convergence of dexterous hand technology paths and their engineering implementation' and inviting like-minded R&D personnel to join. According to his LinkedIn profile, he joined Xiaomi over two months ago, around September 2025.
This hire reflects Xiaomi's expansion in robotics, with 257 open positions across the division, including 12 specifically for dexterous hand projects covering mechanical design, actuators, and grasping algorithms. The company open-sourced its MiMo-Embodied AI model in November 2025, led by new team head Luo Fuli, a former DeepSeek researcher. MiMo-Embodied sets benchmarks in affordance prediction, task planning, and integrates autonomous driving with embodied intelligence.
Xiaomi's robotics efforts include past prototypes like the 2022 CyberOne humanoid and CyberDog series, alongside industrial automation in its Beijing plant, which produces up to 10 million phones annually with 96.8% self-built equipment. The company aims to enhance robot dexterity for future humanoid applications, positioning itself against global competitors like Tesla.
