Latest news with #Unitree
South China Morning Post
8 hours ago
- South China Morning Post
China needs academic shake-up if it wants more innovations like DeepSeek, scholar says
China's doctoral education has long been under attack for overemphasising the number of published papers, along with their lack of groundbreaking research findings. At a recent forum in Beijing, a noted academic blamed the system for shackling talent and hindering innovation. Advertisement 'Can you imagine the emergence of DeepSeek , if its founder Liang Wenfeng had pursued a PhD instead?' That was the question raised by Wang Shuguo, president of eastern China's Fuyao University of Science and Technology , at the Sohu Annual Sci-Tech Conference on May 17. Liang graduated in 2010 with a master's degree in information and communication engineering, before co-founding a quantitative trading fund management firm. He established DeepSeek in 2023. A year later, the artificial intelligence (AI) start-up shocked the world with its low-cost, open-source models that rivalled the products of OpenAI and other leading international players. Wang argued that China's latest technological breakthroughs did not happen in university laboratories, but were instead led by companies whose owners did not have PhDs. Advertisement He gave other examples, including Wang Xingxing , founder and CEO of Unitree – one of China's top developers of quadrupedal and humanoid robots – and Frank Wang Tao, founder of DJI Technology, the world's biggest drone company.
South China Morning Post
a day ago
- Business
- South China Morning Post
Unitree Robotics changes to joint stock limited company, fanning IPO speculation
China's top humanoid robot start-up Unitree Robotics has converted into a company limited by shares, a move that has fanned speculation around its public listing plans, as Chinese robotics firms rapidly expand amid the country's fervour for the artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled machines. Advertisement Unitree has changed from a limited liability company into a joint stock limited company, an equivalent to a company limited by shares, according to records on Chinese corporate database Qichacha published on Thursday. In a letter to business partners, the company said the move was 'due to company development needs', according to a report by the state-run Chinese news outlet Securities Times. A robot dog from Unitree is seen at Zhejiang Overseas Talent Innovation Park in Hangzhou, China, April 23, 2025. Photo: Dickson Lee A joint stock limited structure lets a company issue and transfer shares, allowing it to raise more capital as it scales up its operations. Chinese media outlets have called Unitree's restructuring a move that paved the way for its initial public offering. Hangzhou-based Unitree did not immediately respond to a request for comment. During Hong Kong chief executive John Lee Ka-chiu's visit to Hangzhou in April, Unitree founder and CEO Wang Xingxing reportedly told him that a listing in Hong Kong was a possibility. Advertisement
Gulf Insider
4 days ago
- Business
- Gulf Insider
Humanoid AI Robots In China Fight Club
Four artificial intelligence-enhanced robots have been put through their paces in a Chinese robot fighting competition, duking it out in kickboxing matches until one was declared the champion. The World Robot Competition Mecha Fighting Series had four human-controlled robots built by China-based firm Unitree compete in three, two-minute rounds with winners crowned through a points system, according to a May 26 report from the China state-owned outlet the Global Times. Chen Xiyun, a Unitree team member, said the 'robots fight in a human-machine collaborative way,' with the machines pre-taught moves, but ultimately, a person controls the bot's movements. The robots reportedly weighed 35 kilograms and stood 132 centimeters tall. Ahead of the boxing rounds, the pint-sized robots were put through tests to demonstrate a variety of kicks and punches and assist the organizers in refining the rules. The team with the highest points across the three rounds moves on to fight another opponent. A punch to the head was worth one point, and a kick to the head was worth three. Teams lost five points if their robot fell and 10 points if their robot was down for over eight seconds. During a livestream of the event on the state broadcaster CCTV, Unitree director Wang Qixin said the robotics company used 'AI technology to let robots learn.' 🤖 China hosted the world's first #humanoid robot fighting competition, the CMG World #Robot Competition. Four teams and their #UnitreeG1 robots duked it out in a globally live-streamed event! 🥊 — Chinese Embassy in US (@ChineseEmbinUS) May 26, 2025 'First of all, the motion capture will be based on some professional fighting athletes. Based on their motion capture data, the robot will learn these movements in the virtual world,' he said. In one of the first matches, a robot in pink headgear fought a robot in black headgear. After a flurry of sometimes misplaced punches and kicks, the black-donned bot was the first to be knocked down after throwing a kick and falling over. However, the black-clad android came back strong and scored a knockdown on pink in round three with a front kick. A second knockdown saw the black bot jump on the pink one to hold it down and claim the win. The pink-wearing bot and another wearing red were both eliminated, leaving the black-donned bot and one wearing green to go toe to toe in the finals. Ultimately, the black bot was declared the champion after outscoring its opponent. Another event with full-sized robots is reportedly locked in for December in South China's Guangdong Province. Also read: Watch: Humanoid Robot Goes Full Skynet After 'Imperfect Coding'
Gizmodo
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Gizmodo
Humanoid Robot Boxing Is a Thing Now and Tesla's Optimus Should Be Very Scared
Bad news for Optimus—things are getting physical. There's just something about robots that makes us really want to kick them. Like this one, this one, or all of these ones. I know that the kicking technically has a purpose, but let's be honest, it's not the harrowing trial of human-like locomotion and stability that makes us want to kick, it's the uh… kicking part. Abusing robots is fun, apparently, but also very tiring. I mean, who has time to kick and punch? In this economy? Luckily, this is 2025, and now the robots can kick and punch each other. No, really, they're going in. Humanoid robot fights have officially begun. — CIX 🦾 (@cixliv) May 25, 2025 Welcome to this week's hottest new bloodsport (greasesport?), humanoid robot kickboxing, aka the China Media Group World Robot Tournament, which is, according to the overlords of robot violence themselves, the 'world's first combat competition exclusively featuring humanoid robots.' Ding, ding, ding: In one corner, we have Unitree's G1 robot, and in the other corner, we have… another Unitree's G1 robot! Watch them as they perform feats of kicking and punching and wobbling around after being kicked and punched! It's almost as exciting as human violence! Especially if you're a nerd who's really into engineering. The event, outside of entertaining us with the spectacle of robot-on-robot fisticuffs, is obviously supposed to showcase the agility and humanness of Unitree's G1 robots and China's acumen and advancement on that front. But I'm not sure—technically speaking—there's much to fawn over here. Kicking is cool, don't get me wrong, but robots have been astounding us with feats of agility for a while now, and to be honest, I'll be more impressed when I see a robot that can adeptly fold laundry. But I guess I'm probably missing the point here—this is more about the exhibition than it is the technology. So, to borrow a phrase from everyone's favorite fictional gladiator, Maximus Decimus Meridius, ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED? The answer? Kind of. But to be honest, I'd be a lot more entertained if there were a celebrity in the mix. Not a human one (relax, Danny Bonaduce, you can rest those mittens for now), but a robot one. Pie-in-the-sky scenario? I'm tapping in Tesla's Optimus robot. Sure, Optimus may be better suited for factory life right now (at least Elon Musk hopes so), but how do we really know that Optimus is up to the task of home care and revolutionizing the supply chain until we know whether or not it can kick another robot's metal ass in a fight? I don't know about you, but I always trust the strong guy more. You hear that, Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson? You've got my vote in the bag. No, but seriously. This is your call to action, Mr. Musk. You may be too much of a coward to take on the metaverse's favorite f***boy, Mark Zuckerberg, in the ring, but now is your time to shine—we all know you need the attention. If your robot is really as useful as you say it is, it's time to put your money where Optimus' shaky hands are and show us what Tesla's humanoid bot can do. Though, to be honest, I think the G1 and Optimus are in a different weight class—the former is just a lil guy after all—so we may need to address that first, even if Musk is no stranger to punching down.
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Robots square off in world's first humanoid boxing match
After decades of being tortured, shoved, kicked, burned, and bludgeoned, robots are finally getting their chance to fight back. Sort of. This weekend, Chinese robotics maker Unitree says it will livestream the world's first boxing match between two of its humanoid robots. The event, titled Unitree Iron Fist King: Awakening, will feature a face-off between two of Unitree's 4.3-foot-tall G1 robots. The robots will reportedly be remotely controlled by human engineers, though they are also expected to demonstrate some autonomous, pre-programmed actions as well. Earlier this week, the two robots previewed some of their moves at an elementary school in Hangzhou, China. Video released by Unitree earlier this month shows the robots, boxing gloves strapped on, 'training' with their human coaches. The petite robots throw a few hooks with their arms before being pushed to the ground. One quickly gets back up and, after briefly struggling to face the right direction, spins around and delivers a straight kick, 300-style. Unitree claims its robots use a motion-capture training system that helps them learn from past mistakes and improve over time. The training video also shows the two robots briefly sparring with each other. The clacking sound of steel fills the room as they exchange a flurry of punches. At one point, both simultaneously deliver knee kicks to each other's groin area, sending the robot in blue gear tumbling to the ground. 'The robot is actively learning even more here skills,' the company notes in a caption towards the end of the video. Related: [Worryingly bendy humanoid robot can crush nuts, slice Coke bottles] The human tendency to force robots to fight for our amusement isn't entirely new. The show Battle Bots, which dates back to the late 1990s revolved around engineers creating and designing remote-controlled robots, often armed to the teeth with electric saws and flamethrowers, and forcing them to duke it out. Many, many robots were reduced to scrap metal over the show's 12 seasons. Since then, engineers around the world have been experimenting with new ways to teach bipedal, humanoid robots how to throw punches and land kicks without stumbling or falling. Sometimes these machines are remotely controlled by human operators. In other cases, semi-autonomous robots have learned to 'mirror' physical movements observed in humans. More advanced autonomous robots, like those being developed by Boston Dynamics and Figure, can move around their environment and perform pre-programmed actions. Neither of those companies, it's worth noting, have announced any plans to make their robots fight. Gentlemen, welcome to Fight Club, for robots! Follow us & comment below if you want to try out yourself. — UFB – Ultimate Fighting Bots (@UFBots) March 20, 2025 China is quickly becoming a center stage for public displays of humanoid robot athletic competition. Last month, more than 20 robotics companies entered their robots into a half-marathon race in Beijing, where they competed against each other and human runners. The results were underwhelming. Media reports from the event claimed many of the machines failed to make it past the starting line. Others veered off course, with one reportedly even crashing into a barrier. The first robot to cross the finish line—a machine designed by the Beijing Humanoid Robot Innovation Center—did so nearly an hour and forty minutes after the first human completed the race. Only six robots finished.
