Agile Chinese Humanoid Robots Compete in 1st Kickboxing Tournament

Bored of traditional boxing? Last year’s clash between YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul and legend Mike Tyson made waves — but for something even wilder, check out a humanoid robot kickboxing match in China.

A humanoid robot kickboxing tournament was recently held in Hangzhou, China, and livestreamed on YouTube by CGTN, a state-run news channel. The competing robots each weighed around 35 kg (77 pound) and stood  132 cm (4.3 ft) tall. The standout among the robots was 'G1,' a bipedal model developed by Unitree Robotics, a leading humanoid robot company in China.

Video footage shows two robots in gloves and headgear trading blows with straight punches, hooks, sidekicks, and aerial spin kicks. They also recover quickly after falling, demonstrating impressive balance and agility.

That said, the two machines are remotely operated from the sidelines by their human developers. In addition, both the bots also initially have trouble seeing exactly where their opponents are before successfully trading punches and kicks.

This highlights that Chinese humanoid robots may start at a lower price tag  but still have a long way to go in achieving higher levels of autonomy. Another key challenge is limited hand grip strength, a crucial hurdle to overcome for expanding their use beyond entertainment into factory and industrial applications.

The next humanoid robot kickboxing tournament is set for December in Shenzhen, this time featuring full-sized humanoid robots.