A person who lost the use of their legs after a spinal injury stands, takes a step, then another. The machine strapped to their legs is doing the work their nerves no longer can — and the version that used to cost as much as a house now fits a middle-class budget.
Beijing Da'ai Robot Technology (北京大艾机器人科技有限公司) helped start China's rehab-exoskeleton field. Its lower-limb devices are among the first of their kind approved in the country, and the price curve has moved faster than almost anyone expected.
Key takeaways
- Da'ai (大艾机器人), founded by Shuai Mei (帅梅), built what it describes as China's first self-developed lower-limb exoskeleton cleared by the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA).
- A new model, the 下肢外骨骼康复训练机器人 (AiGo), was registered by the Beijing Drug Administration on 24 November 2025 (registration 京械注准20252190940, Class II).
- The company says pricing has fallen from roughly ¥1,000,000 for early medical units to under ¥100,000 (≈US$14,000), with a consumer "神行" series aimed at the thousand-yuan level (≈US$140–420).
- Da'ai says its devices have served hundreds of rehabilitation institutions and "hundreds of thousands" of users; two paraplegic users broke a foreign 15-day exoskeleton marathon record, and an exoskeleton-assisted torchbearer appeared at the Winter Olympics.
From hospital only to the living room
Exoskeletons were, until recently, a hospital luxury: bulky, expensive, and reserved for clinical rehab. Da'ai's early "AiDong" series targeted exactly that — helping people with paraplegia, hemiplegia and cerebral palsy rebuild movement through assisted training.
The later "AiXing" series added AI-based gait support, and the "AiJia" line pushed pricing below ¥100,000. The newest consumer "神行" series, previewed for a second-half 2025 release, targets everyday uses — helping the elderly or outdoor enthusiasts walk farther and protect joints — at a fraction of the original cost.
The November 2025 registration of the AiGo training robot extends the certified lineup. Registration with the Beijing Drug Administration (Class II) confirms the device met requirements for its indicated use: rehabilitation training for people with lower-limb movement impairment.
Why the price drop matters
Rehabilitation exoskeletons compete with physiotherapy, wheelchair use and, in severe cases, long-term care. At ¥1,000,000, the math rarely worked outside wealthy hospitals. Below ¥100,000, clinics and some families can justify a unit; at the thousand-yuan consumer tier, the addressable market expands to mobility assistance for aging users.
Da'ai frames its strategy as moving from medical rehab to "universal benefit" — a familiar arc in Chinese hardware, where scale and local supply chains compress prices fast. The company says it has supported national research programs and that its devices have reached hundreds of thousands of users through rehab institutions.
The competitive and policy backdrop
China's exoskeleton field is crowded but uneven. Da'ai's differentiator is being first to NMPA clearance and building a product ladder from clinical to consumer. Other domestic players focus on industrial lifting or elder-care assistance, but the rehab-and-mobility segment has the clearest medical-regulatory path.
Beijing has actively promoted rehab and assistive robotics, opening trial scenarios for companies like Da'ai — the "神行" prototype appeared at public demonstrations on the Great Wall and Fragrant Hills before its consumer launch.
Who really benefits, and the clinical caveat
The clearest winners from cheaper rehab exoskeletons are two groups: rehabilitation institutions that can now amortize a device across many patients, and individuals with lower-limb impairment who gain a supervised training tool. For aging users, a consumer-tier device that reduces joint strain on walks is a more modest, but real, quality-of-life add-on.
The caveat is honesty about what the machine does. An exoskeleton assists movement; it does not repair injured nerves or restore sensation. Regular use can help maintain muscle and mobility, but claims of recovery should be weighed against published evidence, which remains limited. The right framing is "aid," not "cure" — and buyers should treat any vendor promising reversal of paralysis with skepticism.
Honest limitations
The pricing and user-count figures are company statements, not independently audited, and "hundreds of thousands of users" likely counts people who tried devices at institutions rather than owners. Reimbursement remains uneven across Chinese cities, so out-of-pocket cost still varies widely. Exoskeletons assist movement; they do not restore nerve function, and long-term health outcomes from regular use need more published evidence. The consumer "神行" series was previewed for late-2025 release, and final specs, price and availability should be confirmed against current listings.
What readers can do now
- Rehabilitation centers and clinics: verify the NMPA/registration number and indicated use before procurement, and compare training outcomes against conventional physiotherapy.
- Patients and families: ask whether a certified rehab exoskeleton is appropriate for the specific impairment, and check local reimbursement and trial programs.
- Payers and policymakers: track which exoskeleton indications gain reimbursement — that, more than price, will decide real-world access.