At first glance, the controversy over the quadruped robot displayed at the recent AI summit in Delhi may seem trivial: a university overreaching, an overzealous professor overstating, and a demonstration mislabelled. We are promptly informed that remedial action has already been taken and Galgotias University has been shown the door. Case closed. Except, it just is not!

The robot in question, widely identified as a commercially available Chinese quadruped platform called Unitree Go2, was introduced under an Indian name -- Orion. That much is documented in the footage circulated during the summit. The narrative advanced was clear; here was a visible emblem of India's rising hardware capability in artificial intelligence and robotics. But the real problem starts when you realise that this was not confined to one campus stall.

Wipro, India's technology giant, showcased a similar robot at the same venue, reportedly under a different name -- TJ. IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw amplified the moment on social media, celebrating it as evidence of India's technological stride. The tweet was later deleted after questions surfaced regarding the machine's origin. It is here that the "isolated goof-up" explanation........

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