Global AGV development began in the early 1950s. The world's first AGV was successfully developed by Barrett Electronics in the United States in the early 1950s. By the late 1980s, AGVs had reached a mature stage of development in Europe, America, and Japan, and were widely used in various industries. AGV development in China began in the 1970s. In 1976, the Beijing Lifting Machinery Research Institute developed the first AGV and built the first AGV ball bearing processing demonstration system.
In 1991, the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Siasun Robot & Automation Co., Ltd. designed an automated assembly AGV for Shenyang Jinbei Automobile Company, marking the commercialization of AGVs in China.
As an important branch of AGVs, the development of unmanned forklifts (forklift-type AGVs) in China can be traced as follows: In 1996, Kunming Shipbuilding Intelligent Equipment Co., Ltd. cooperated with Samsung of South Korea to install unmanned forklifts at the Yuxi Tobacco Factory by introducing NDC (Network Control Center) technology, marking the beginning of unmanned forklift technology in China. In China, unmanned forklifts appeared as early as 2000, initially used in industries such as tobacco, military, and minting, and were very expensive. In 2014, AGEN launched its first reflectorless laser-guided forklift, marking the commercialization of SLAM natural navigation technology and AMR forklifts.