Danish supermarket chain Føtex is set to trial humanoid robots that will restock shelves at night, with the aim of freeing up employees’ time and improving customer service.
The robots are manufactured by China’s Unitree and developed by Denmark’s Hive Robots. Initial training began in June 2026, with human operators teaching the robots movements and procedures.
The aim is for the robots to restock store shelves independently by early 2027, with most of the work taking place overnight when stores are closed to customers.
By automating some of these tasks, employees could spend more time assisting customers rather than carrying out repetitive manual work.
In the future, the robots may also be able to monitor product expiry dates, detect empty shelves and identify items that have been misplaced.