Galgotias University found itself in a storm after the university presented a Chinese robodog as its own during the India AI Impact Summit 2026. Amid the uproar, the university has now been asked to exit from the AI summit due to the backlash. Now actor-comedian Vir Das has reacted to the fiasco.
How Vir Das reacted
Vir took to his X account and wrote, “Nothing is REALLY original when you think about it. Humans are creations themselves, interacting and bursting into new forms that are derivative, all made by the great Galgotia University in the sky.”
He added, in a separate post, a picture of a dog, and wrote, “Gonna use this opportunity to encourage everyone to adopt an indie dog. They are wonderful. This is stoopee. Just told him he wasn’t made by Galgotia University.”
All about the robodog backlash
The controversy began after a video from the summit went viral in which Professor Neha Singh described the robot dog, named “Orion”, as having been developed by the university’s Centre of Excellence. In the clip, she said the robot could carry out surveillance and monitoring tasks and move freely across the campus.
Soon after, several viewers identified the machine as a commercially available quadruped robot made by Chinese firm Unitree Robotics, prompting criticism on social media and triggering a clarification from the university.
Amid the row, the Greater Noida-based university issued a clarification, stating that its professors never claimed the product as its own. The official statement from the university adds that the device was acquired from Unitree as part of its AI investments.
Another professor at the AI Summit, Dr Aishwarya Shrivastava, also reiterated the stance of the university and said that the display of the device had been misinterpreted.
“We never claimed that we manufactured it (robodog), it was only a part of our AI investment. It got misinterpreted in a big way,” she told news agency ANI, adding that the university also did not try to hide the logo of the Chinese company.
People familiar with the matter have told HT that the university has been asked to empty its pavilion and leave the Impact AI Summit. Galgotias University has stated it has received no such direction from the organisers or the ministry.
