BG-5 Golden Dragon Fish: What Boyagongdao Demonstrated at CIFTIS 2026

Boyagongdao used the 2026 China International Fair for Trade in Services (CIFTIS) in Beijing to showcase the BG-5 Golden Dragon Fish, a compact biomimetic autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) modeled on the swimming motion of a golden arowana. The key demonstration was not simply fish-like appearance: the vehicle was presented as detecting obstacles and adapting its route rather than traveling only along a fixed, pre-programmed path. 48

A propeller-free fish robot

Instead of a conventional rotating propeller, the BG-5 moves with a flexible, multi-joint tail. Reports describe the tail as having three joints divided into seven segments, producing thrust through a traveling, wave-like motion. 5

That design is central to the vehicle’s biomimetic approach. Its body and tail aim to reproduce fish locomotion while retaining autonomous navigation functions, rather than using the more familiar form factor of a small propeller-driven underwater drone. 46

What the CIFTIS display showed

At the Beijing event, Boyagongdao presented the BG-5 as a vehicle capable of sensing obstacles and autonomously changing course. According to exhibition reporting, its onboard sensors allow it to plan movement around obstacles instead of relying exclusively on a predetermined route. 48

The available reporting supports a demonstration of fish-like locomotion and autonomous obstacle avoidance. It does not establish performance benchmarks for endurance, localization accuracy, navigation accuracy, acoustic signature, payload capacity, or operation in conditions such as strong currents, turbid water, dense vegetation, tunnels, or working hydropower facilities.

Listed BG-5 specifications

The reported figures below are catalogue or manufacturer-listed specifications, rather than independently measured test results:

• Dimensions: 640 × 204 × 90 mm 5
• Mass: about 3 kg 5
• Maximum speed: 0.6 m/s 5
• Maximum operating depth: 5 m 5
• Propulsion: three-joint, seven-segment traveling-wave tail rather than a conventional propeller 5

Those numbers indicate a small shallow-water platform, not a deep-diving AUV. The 5 m depth rating in particular defines the currently reported operating envelope. 5

Intended uses and the BG-5V research platform

Reporting around the exhibit describes the BG-5 as a potential platform for shallow-water inspection, including hydropower-related work, as well as research and educational applications involving fish-inspired locomotion. 613

Boyagongdao also lists a BG-5V configuration that combines the robotic fish with a software platform for multi-robot experiments. The listed research functions include global and local path planning, task allocation, formation control, cooperative transport, and other coordinated group tasks. 12

A compact, propeller-free vehicle could be useful to investigate navigation in confined or cluttered water where maneuverability and avoiding propeller contact are important considerations. But that is a design rationale, not proof that the BG-5 has already outperformed conventional underwater vehicles in real inspection environments.

What remains to be validated

The CIFTIS appearance demonstrated a distinctive combination of biomimetic propulsion and autonomous route adjustment. It did not provide independent evidence about mission duration, underwater communications reliability, noise levels, payload limits, or navigation precision.

As a result, the BG-5’s quoted 0.6 m/s top speed and 5 m depth should be read as rated specifications. Its practical value for hydropower inspection, cluttered-water navigation, or coordinated multi-robot missions will depend on validation in the actual conditions, mission lengths, and sensing environments where it is deployed. 512