Humanoid machine face-plants at China's inaugural ‘robot Olympics'
The pratfall during Thursday's opening ceremony in Beijing offered a fitting window into the limitations of the machines during the three-day showcase of robotic ambition.
More than 500 humanoid robots from 280 teams across 16 countries gathered to compete in everything from soccer to sprinting, with mixed results.
4 A humanoid robot face-plants at China's first World Humanoid Robot Games, prompting two humans to carry it off stage.
ABC
Teams from the United States, Germany, Japan and Brazil brought their mechanical athletes to compete alongside Chinese universities including Tsinghua and Peking, plus three ambitious middle schools.
But the robots had other plans. During soccer matches, four mechanical players crashed into each other and collapsed in a tangled heap of metal limbs.
In the 1,500-meter dash, one sprinting robot suddenly toppled mid-stride at full speed, drawing gasps and unexpected cheers from the crowd, who paid between $25-$80 to witness the future of artificial intelligence.
'We come here to play and to win. But we are also interested in research,' said Max Polter from Germany's HTWK Robots football team, affiliated with Leipzig University of Applied Sciences.
'You can test a lot of interesting new and exciting approaches in this contest. If we try something and it doesn't work, we lose the game. That's sad but it is better than investing a lot of money into a product which failed.'
4 While several robots took a spill and needed help getting up, many managed to recover on their own.
ABC
The opening ceremony mixed genuine technological achievement with comedic mishaps. Robots danced to hip-hop music, performed martial arts and played musical instruments including keyboards, guitars and drums.
Some executed backflips and celebratory cheers like real athletes, while others demonstrated soccer skills and boxing moves.
One robotic soccer player managed to score a goal after several attempts, causing the humanoid goalkeeper to dramatically fall to the ground in apparent despair.
Another player tumbled but impressively stood up without human assistance, earning applause from spectators.
Despite frequent falls requiring human helpers to right the toppled machines, many robots demonstrated the ability to recover independently.
4 A mechanical sprinter runs during the event, drawing gasps and cheers from the Beijing crowd.
WU HAO/EPA/Shutterstock
Organizers emphasized that these public failures provide valuable data for developing practical applications in factories and assembly lines.
Soccer matches help train coordination abilities that could prove useful for collaborative manufacturing operations requiring multiple robotic units to work together, commentators explained.
China is pouring billions into humanoid robotics as the nation confronts an aging population and escalating technological competition with the United States.
The country has staged multiple high-profile robotics events recently, including what it claimed was the world's first humanoid robot marathon and the opening of retail stores dedicated to mechanical workers.
4 A humanoid boxer squares off in the ring, showcasing China's AI-powered robotics ambitions despite frequent mechanical mishaps.
WU HAO/EPA/Shutterstock
Morgan Stanley analysts noted a surge in public attendance at recent robot conferences compared to previous years, suggesting widespread Chinese embrace of what experts call 'embodied intelligence.'
A government official quoted in the state-run People's Daily declared that every participating robot 'is creating history' during the event.
Whether that history involves graceful athletic achievement or spectacular mechanical failures remains to be seen.
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Taken as a whole, this group of sculptures resembles a powerful musical movement: rising, falling, flowing, ascending, soaring. Spatially, the energy these sculptures project envelops viewers in an atmosphere of deep compassion and sorrow. Even before entering the memorial, visitors are already touched, so that once inside, each sight of a bone fragment or a blood-stained garment evokes boundless grief and reflection. In these sculptures created from 2005 to 2007, Wu avoided direct depiction of the Japanese army's atrocities, choosing instead to focus on the victims, capturing the devastation and suffering of Nanjing's residents during the massacre – their families shattered, their lives destroyed. He explained that these works are meant to 'bring the victims back to life,' allowing their last cries before death to express the shared voice of humanity. By giving form to the souls of all those who suffered, the sculptures become important vessels of the human spirit. Only in this way can artworks urge all humankind to reflect, so that the lessons of the past will never be forgotten. Outside the memorial, the sculptures were set within a pool symbolizing the path to escape terror, depicting 10 groups of 21 figures fleeing their homes in the wake of the bloody massacre. Nearly life-sized, these sculptures enhance the sense of realism. Among them are an elderly son supporting his octogenarian mother as they flee, a violated young woman standing by a well, and a monk closing the eyes of the wrongfully slain as he escapes. The sculptures are cast in a silvery-gray tone, distinct from the familiar bronze and copper hues, symbolizing the survivors' escape from overwhelming terror. The piece that moved the sculptor most was one of an infant clinging to his deceased mother, seeking milk from her lifeless body. This work is based on the harrowing experience of Nanjing Massacre survivor Chang Zhiqiang's family. Three of his younger brothers were bayoneted to death, his mother fatally stabbed in the lungs. Amidst tears, he placed his youngest brother beside their mother, and the infant crawled to her chest to nurse. That final drop of milk marked both an end and a fragile hope. By the next day, mother and child had frozen together in the bitter cold, never to be parted. The process of creating these sculptures was far from tranquil for Wu. Immersed in historical research and interviews with survivors like Chang Zhiqiang and Xia Shuqin, he was deeply affected by the anguish and outcries captured in old photographs and personal stories. Many sleepless nights followed, and even as he walked through the old districts of Nanjing, he would sometimes imagine hearing the echoes of explosions and cries of slaughter. Wu employed a variety of sculpting techniques – chiseling, striking, pounding, and molding by hand. He recalled working outdoors in the sweltering 38 C heat, laboring through the night for hours. His deep sorrow and anguish over this chapter of history were transformed into the speed and power of his artistic creation. Looking further back, this passionate engagement with the history of the war – a fervor that transforms into powerful artistic energy – has also flowed from the hands of the elder generations of artists, many of whom witnessed these events firsthand. Their collective memory and creative expression have ensured that the tragedy and heroism of that era continue to live on, warning and inspiring future generations through the language of art. Never forget Xiao Feng, the 10th president of the China Academy of Art, passed away in Hangzhou on July 8 at the age of 93. He created a work depicting Canadian surgeon Norman Bethune treating Eighth Route Army soldiers during the War against Japanese Aggression, which was included in textbooks across the country. Xiao Ge, his youngest daughter, told the Global Times that her father had been proud all his life of being a literary and art soldier in the New Fourth Army. Depicted in the painting jointly created by Xiao and his wife Song Ren is a makeshift operating table that was set up in a dilapidated temple not far from the front lines. Outside, the sounds of war rage on, while inside, Bethune stands calm and focused, his brow slightly furrowed and lips pressed tightly together as he meticulously performs surgery on a wounded soldier. In the background, a vigilant guard stands watch at the temple door, ever alert to protect the scene within. Critics note that through artistic treatment, the image's sense of narrative, drama, and conflict is enhanced in the painting, effectively highlighting Bethune's contributions to resisting aggression and pursuing peace. Xiao's works are mostly tied to his experiences and memories from the war. In his creations, there have been images of guerrilla fighters maneuvering through the Luoxiao Mountains, New Fourth Army soldiers bidding farewell to Jiangnan, officers and soldiers watering their horses by the Yangtze River, and warriors hidden among reeds. His works go beyond mere narratives of suffering, focusing instead on capturing moments of warmth amidst the chaos of war. 'They (Xiao and Song) pursued truth, goodness and beauty, worked for their beliefs and the people all their lives, and finally donated all their works to the people,' the painter's daughter said. On the eastern side of the exhibition hall displaying Wu's sculptures, the painting Victory and Harmony by post-1990 artist Hong Fangzhou hangs on the red wall of the East Wing Hall of the Imperial Ancestral Temple, quietly awaiting an audience. This artwork is divided into two main sections of white and red, blending fragments of war – like the remnants of shells and the blood and tears of heroes – with the joyful laughter of people celebrating peace after victory. The stark contrast between the two sides further underscores the preciousness of peace. From Xiao, a witness and survivor of war, to young artist Hong, each generation of creators has used their own unique perspectives and artistic forms to capture that history of blood and fire, passing on the longing for peace. As Wu expressed in a poem he inscribed upon completing this group of sculptures: With unspeakable sorrow, I recall those blood-soaked storms; With trembling hands, I caress the souls of the 300,000 departed; With a child's pure heart, I engrave the pain of this suffering nation. I pray, I hope, for the awakening of this ancient people – the rise of the spirit! Source: Global Times:Company: Global TimesContact Person: Anna Li Email: [email protected] Website: Beijing Disclaimer: This press release may contain forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements describe future expectations, plans, results, or strategies (including product offerings, regulatory plans and business plans) and may change without notice. You are cautioned that such statements are subject to a multitude of risks and uncertainties that could cause future circumstances, events, or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements, including the risks that actual results may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements.
