China Hosts First-Ever Robot Kickboxing Tournament

The Global Times reports:

The China Media Group (CMG) World Robot Competition – Mecha Fighting Series, the first-ever humanoid robot fighting tournament, kicked off in Hangzhou, East China’s Zhejiang Province on Sunday, as contestants, including robots developed by Unitree Robotics armed with a wide range of combat skills, gathered for a livestreamed showdown, while putting on display Chinese robotics firms’ tech prowess.

This competition marks a historic moment as it is the world’s first combat sports event centered around humanoid robots, signaling the gradual integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into combat sports, the CMG report said, noting that all humanoid battlebots are equipped with domestically developed technologies.

The competition includes demonstration and competitive matches, with humanoid robots showcasing combat moves and robots controlled by humans in real-time fighting in the arena, according to the organizer.

Read the full article. The Global Times is an official outlet of the Chinese government. Earlier this month, robots raced humans in a Chinese marathon.