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Boston Globe
5 hours ago
- Science
- Boston Globe
The athletes at China's robot games fell down a lot, but also showed possibilities
During soccer matches, child-size ones tripped over each other, falling down like dominoes. One goalkeeper robot stood placidly as its opponent kicked a ball at its legs several times before finally managing to score. One robot by China's Unitree Robotics plowed into a human staff member while sprinting during a track event, knocking him down. Advertisement In kickboxing matches, robots wearing colorful gloves and head gear struggled to land punches. 'To be honest, the hit rate is a little low,' a commentator said in the event's official livestream. 'They're punching the air.' After a few minutes of flailing jabs and kicks, the referee declared one robot the winner. It raised its gloved hands and pumped them in the air to the sound of spectators applauding, while its opponent laid down in an apparent show of defeat. The event was China's latest high-profile robotics showcase. During China's Lunar New Year's Eve television gala, watched by hundreds of millions of people, humanoid robots performed folk dances. In April, the Beijing municipal government held a half-marathon for 12,000 runners and 20 humanoid robots. Advertisement China is trying to make rapid advancements in robotics, propelled by government directives and massive investments. Robots powered by artificial intelligence have already revolutionized manufacturing in the country. That has brought down operating costs and in some cases helped companies withstand President Trump's tariffs. Beijing officials told domestic news media the Humanoid Robot Games were a test of cutting-edge advancements in robotics technology. The test revealed limitations, but also possibilities. 'Despite the pratfalls, significant progress in robot locomotion and balance is being achieved including back flips, side flips, and other acrobatic and martial arts moves,' said Ken Goldberg, a robotics professor at the University of California Berkeley. One robot from Unitree Robotics won the gold medal for the 1,500 meter indoor track event with a time of 6 minutes, 34.40 seconds. The speed was impressive, Goldberg said. Although the robot was far slower than the human who holds the record in that event (Jakob Ingebrigtsen of Norway, who finished in 3:29.63), it was faster than many nonprofessional human runners. Some entrepreneurs believe humanoid robots will one day do many physical tasks now handled by people, including household chores, warehouse jobs, and factory labor. But for now, even simple tasks like loading the dishwasher are anything but simple for them. Alan Fern, a robotics professor at Oregon State University, said the Humanoid Robot Games helped to 'give the public a realistic impression of where things really are.' Fern said the games highlighted rapid advancements in the industry. One is that manufacturing of humanoid robots has developed enough that researchers no longer need to pay exorbitant amounts of money to buy them, or build their own, as they did only a year or two ago. Advertisement Another is that advancements in AI allow the machines to do a wider range of basic tasks. Five years ago, 'it was rare to see a humanoid robot that could reliably walk, let alone run, jump or handle rough terrain,' he said. But Fern said the type of robots used in the games are generally not equipped for higher-level functions such as planning or reasoning and usually need a human operator to help guide them. 'The robots are still dumb,' he said. This article originally appeared in
Straits Times
a day ago
- Sport
- Straits Times
The athletes at China's Robot Games fell down a lot
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox Humanoid robots take part in the free fight final match during the 2025 World Humanoid Robot Games. NEW YORK – There's a very real concern that robots could eventually make some of our jobs obsolete. But at a robot-only sports competition in China over the weekend, the immediate concern was that they would fall over or crash into each other. The Humanoid Robot Games, a three-day event in Beijing that ended on Sunday, featured more than 280 teams from universities and private companies in 16 countries. Some robots landed back flips and successfully navigated obstacle courses and rough terrain. In other cases, the robots' athletic ability left, well, something to be desired. During football matches, child-size ones tripped over each other, falling down like dominoes. One goalkeeper robot stood placidly as its opponent kicked a ball at its legs several times before finally managing to score. One robot by China's Unitree Robotics plowed into a human staff member while sprinting during a track event, knocking him down. In kickboxing matches, robots wearing colorful gloves and head gear struggled to land punches. 'To be honest, the hit rate is a little low,' a commentator said. 'They're punching the air.' Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. World Arrangements being made for Putin, Zelensky to meet, says Trump World Trump's art of the 'peace' deal for Ukraine and Russia Singapore 'I vaped when I woke up until I slept': More youth vaping to cope with stress, say social workers Singapore 'I'd have phone in one hand, vape in the other': Youth addicted to vapes gets help to quit habit Singapore New ITE facility with mock-ups, simulations to train built environment students Opinion Dirty BlueSG cars and trashed bikes show us why Singaporeans can't have nice things After a few minutes of flailing jabs and kicks, the referee declared one robot the winner. It raised its gloved hands and pumped them in the air to the sound of spectators applauding, while its opponent laid down in an apparent show of defeat. The event was China's latest high-profile robotics showcase. During China's Lunar New Year's Eve television gala, watched by hundreds of millions of people, humanoid robots performed folk dances. In April, the Beijing municipal government held a half-marathon for 12,000 runners and 20 humanoid robots. China is trying to make rapid advancements in robotics, propelled by government directives and massive investments. Robots powered by artificial intelligence have already revolutionized manufacturing in the country. That has brought down operating costs and in some cases helped companies withstand US President Donald Trump's tariffs. Beijing officials told domestic news media that the Humanoid Robot Games were a test of cutting-edge advancements in robotics technology. The test revealed limitations, but also possibilities. 'Despite the pratfalls, significant progress in robot locomotion and balance is being achieved including back flips, side flips, and other acrobatic and martial arts moves,' said Ken Goldberg, a robotics professor at the University of California, Berkeley. One robot from Unitree Robotics won the gold medal for the 1,500 meter indoor track event with a time of 6 minutes, 34.40 seconds. The speed was impressive, Goldberg said. Although the robot was far slower than the human who holds the record in that event (Jakob Ingebrigtsen of Norway, who finished in 3:29.63), it was faster than many nonprofessional human runners. Some entrepreneurs believe that humanoid robots will one day do many physical tasks now handled by people, including household chores, warehouse jobs and factory labor. But for now, even simple tasks like loading the dishwasher are anything but simple for them. Alan Fern, a robotics professor at Oregon State University, said the Humanoid Robot Games helped to 'give the public a realistic impression of where things really are.' Fern said the games highlighted rapid advancements in the industry. One is that manufacturing of humanoid robots has developed enough that researchers no longer need to pay exorbitant amounts of money to buy them, or build their own, as they did only a year or two ago. Another is that advancements in AI allow the machines to do a wider range of basic tasks. Five years ago, 'it was rare to see a humanoid robot that could reliably walk, let alone run, jump or handle rough terrain,' he said. But Fern said the type of robots used in the games are generally not equipped for higher-level functions such as planning or reasoning and usually need a human operator to help guide them. 'The robots are still dumb,' he said. NYTIMES
South China Morning Post
30-01-2025
- Entertainment
- South China Morning Post
Lunar New Year gala honours American who ‘showed kindness to Chinese people'
Published: 10:00pm, 30 Jan 2025 China's ambassador to the United States Xie Feng has praised an American who appeared on the televised Lunar New Year's Eve gala as proof of the kindness that exists between the two peoples. Evan Kail, a pawn shop owner from Minneapolis, donated an album of photographs that depicted a series of wartime atrocities committed by the Japanese, including the 1937 Nanking massacre . After his appearance on Tuesday night's show, Xie posted on social media: 'It's great to see Evan, the American who donated a precious WWII photo album to China, at our national Spring Festival Gala this year! 'Whoever shows kindness to the Chinese people will always be reciprocated with kindness. Evan, you now have 1.4 billion Chinese friends!' The annual variety show, known as Chunwan , has become a key element of the nation's Lunar New Year celebrations for many in China since it first aired in 1983. Kail's appearance on Tuesday night's show was Beijing's latest effort to promote personal exchanges with the US despite competition with Washington.
Voice of America
28-01-2025
- Business
- Voice of America
China sees boom in feasts for pets on Lunar New Year's Eve
As pet parents in China usher in the Year of the Snake and host Lunar New Year's Eve dinners with their loved ones, some are also making sure that their fur babies, or 'mao hai zi,' are not left out. Over the past month, a growing number of consumers have been ordering pet-friendly versions of the traditional New Year's Eve reunion dinner, ranging from freshly made meals to gift boxes of dried food. A search for 'dogs' and cats' Lunar New Year's Eve dinner' on Douyin, the Chinese version of Tiktok and the most popular short-video app in China, lists dozens of choices. 'Lucky' dumplings Some vendors even tout traditional Chinese delicacy dishes such as 'Buddha jumps over the wall,' which includes seafood and meats, and 'eight treasures duck rice' in addition to common ones such 'lucky' dumplings and rice cake, adapted for dog palates. The prices range from 19.9 to 168 yuan ($2.8 to $24) per set. One vendor on Douyin, LAOTOU Pet Bakery, told VOA in a written reply Monday that it sold out of the special holiday pet meals more than a week before the Lunar New Year, which starts on Wednesday this year. Lou Yu, vice president of Favor Pets Company in Beijing, also that the pet service firm has seen a boom year in holiday sales of pet food. Business peaked during the Dragon Boat Festival in June, Mid-Autumn Festival in September and the Christmas holidays in December, when, respectively, rice dumplings, moon cakes and special Christmas treats were offered for pets, he said. Booming holiday sales 'For [pets'] reunion dinner on Lunar New Year's Eve, we've probably seen a 45% to 50% growth in sales this year, compared to a year ago, when sales were still tepid,' Lou told VOA by phone on Monday. The company ran out of stock before the eight-day-long holiday began this week as a growing number of owners splurge on their pets. Festive Fido and feline food have become an emerging and 'under-supplied' niche market that is bucking the trend despite China's economic slowdown. China's 'cat and dog parents' total more than 120 million, more than double from a decade ago, according to Lou. Last year, there were some 9.54 million babies born in China. Pets are expected to outnumber children under 4 years of age by a ratio of 2 to 1 by 2030 — a shift that will likely create a substantial $12 billion market for pet food in China, U.S. investment bank Goldman Sachs forecasted in a report late last year. Authorities in China ended the country's one-child policy in 2016 and started encouraging young couples to have three children in 2021 as the country's population ages and the number of newborns declines. Pets over kids By contrast, many couples who find it too expensive to raise children are instead choosing pets over kids. On Saturday, 11 dogs were treated with plates of shredded chicken and lettuce — a special Lunar New Year meal — in a Shanghai restaurant. Their owners were all female. "He's my soulmate! He gives me a lot of emotional support … and he's a good friend that I'd like to be with and enjoy the New Year atmosphere together," attendee Momo Ni told Reuters news agency, referring to her border collie, Yakult. Daisy Xu, another 28-year-old owner, said her dog, named Niu Niu, is already a beloved member of the family. 'We will make her another dog meal. … When it comes to New Year gifts, I think my parents will probably give their granddaughter a red envelope,' Xu told Reuters. Adults traditionally give red envelopes containing money to children during the Lunar New Year. Rich people's world While some Chinese social media users share postings of their pets' special holiday treats, some users were not as enthusiastic, with several complaining that 'these dogs and cats are better fed than I am.' A Guizhou province-based Weibo user named 'magnolia0526' said, 'The luxurious lifestyle of cats and dogs highlights the uneven distribution of resources in human society, which is not cute at all.' The post was in response to the hashtag 'sales of reunion dinner and dumplings for pets has seen a 480% growth.' Another Shandong province-based user mocked the trend, saying 'this is the world of the rich people.' Aside from pet food, Favor Pet's Lou said China has experienced a booming pet economy in recent years with growing business opportunities from pet grooming and sitting services, especially during holiday seasons. He said that a growing number of job seekers have signed up for the company's training programs as they shift career paths to find opportunities in the pet service sector. This article originated in VOA's Mandarin Service.
South China Morning Post
27-01-2025
- Business
- South China Morning Post
China's restaurant owners look forward to Spring Festival after tough year
Lunar New Year, arguably China's biggest annual holiday, can be seen as a barometer for the country's economy. As more than a billion people travel, shop, eat and give gifts to family and friends, their preferences and habits paint a picture of the nation's consumption over a few festive weeks. This is the third story in a nine-part series . Bookings for family reunion dinners on Lunar New Year's Eve – the centrepiece of Spring Festival celebrations – are booming across China, offering a ray of hope to struggling restaurant owners following a year of weak demand. It is traditionally the most important meal of the year for Chinese families, and to secure more business on Lunar New Year's Eve – which falls on January 28 this year – many restaurants are competing on price and innovation. At Mrs Yung's Restaurant in Guangzhou, the capital of southern China's Guangdong province, founder Vivian Wai Tong Ng is offering a 10-dish reunion dinner for eight to 10 people for 1,999 yuan (US$274). Premium fish, shrimp and crabs from the brackish waters at the Pearl River estuary, traditional Hong Kong-style roast goose and Cantonese clay pot rice made with imported Spanish pork will be included on the menu. The price of 1,999 yuan is roughly equivalent to one-third of an average Guangzhou office worker's monthly salary. Ng, who has been running restaurants in the city for 20 years, said similar set menus in previous years were offered at twice the price.
