A robot that uses artificial intelligence technology to pump fuel into motorists’ cars was recently unveiled in China. Since then, videos have been circulating online showing how the automated petrol station works, but some have been shared out of context with claims that the footage was filmed in South Africa. This is false; the robot in the videos was filmed at a filling station in Hangzhou, China.
The video shows a silver and yellow robotic arm opening a fuel door, turning the fuel cap and pouring fuel into the tank.
“New employee at a petrol station in sandton. No more human workers (sic),” reads the post published on X on December 8, 2023.
Sandton is an affluent suburb north of Johannesburg (archived here).
Replies to the post showed that some believed it was true, with messages expressing concern over the future of South Africa’s petrol attendants. Others noticed the Chinese writing on the meter and expressed doubts.
However, this video does not show an automated petrol bowser in South Africa.
Energy Arm
AFP Fact Check found no media reports about any AI-powered robotic filling station in South Africa.
A reverse image search of keyframes in the video using the InVID-WeVerify toolkit found that the footage had been circulating online at least a few days before the misleading post. It was notably featured in a YouTube video about an automated fuel pump system in China (archived here).
A keyword search led to an article in Chinese media published on December 6, 2023, about a machine called YIGOLI Energy Arm that was developed through a collaboration between Zhejiang Yigoli Intelligence and Zhejiang Expressway Petroleum (archived here).
According to the article, the robotic arm can “accurately recognise more than 90 percent of passenger car gas cap structures through artificial intelligence technology”. After the fuel command is given, it can complete the required operations in 120 seconds.
The video circulating online was taken at Xiaoshan Nanyang Gas Station in China’s Hangzhou, Zhejiang. AFP Fact Check confirmed this by geo-locating it on Baidu Maps (archived here).
In the background of the video, you can see a distinctive building with a large antenna on top. This matches a building that can be seen on Baidu Maps, which was painted a different colour at the time the street view shot was captured several years ago.
The same building can also be seen in a promotional video for YIGOLI (archived here).
Hangzhou’s Xiaoshan district promoted the “refuel assistant” in a post on X on December 12, 2023:
“Meet the robotic refuel assistant that seamlessly opens fuel caps, inserts and removes the nozzle, and securely closes the cap. Experience the future of intelligent refuelling!” (archived here).
David Turner is a globe-trotting journalist who brings a global perspective to our readers. With a commitment to shedding light on international events, he explores complex geopolitical issues, offering a nuanced view of the world’s most pressing challenges.
