A fast left hook, a entrance kick to the chest, a number of criss-cross jabs, and the group cheers. However it’s not kickboxing prowess that concludes the match. It’s an tried roundhouse kick that squarely misses its goal, sending the kickboxer from a high college group tumbling to the ground.Whereas conventional kickboxing comes with the chance of blood, sweat and severe head accidents, the rivals in Friday’s match on the inaugural World Humanoid Robotic Video games in Beijing confronted a unique set of challenges. Stability, battery life and a way of philosophical objective being amongst them.The kickboxers, pint-sized humanoid robots entered by groups from main Chinese language technological universities, are a part of a jamboree of humanoid occasions going down at China’s newest know-how occasion. After spectators within the 12,000-seater Nationwide Pace Skating Oval, constructed for the 2022 Winter Olympics, stood for the Chinese language nationwide anthem on Friday morning, the government-backed video games started.“I got here right here out of curiosity,” mentioned Hong Yun, a 58-year-old retired engineer, sat within the entrance row. Seeing the robots race was “way more thrilling than seeing actual people”, Hong added.Robots compete in a five-a-side soccer match on the primary day of the World Humanoid Robotic Video games in Beijing on Friday. {Photograph}: Tingshu Wang/ReutersThe video games placed on show China’s prowess in humanoid robotics, a technological area that has been pushed to the forefront of the nation’s synthetic intelligence business. The hype machine is in full swing.In addition to kickboxing, humanoids participated in athletics, soccer and dance competitions. One robotic needed to drop out of the 1500-metre as a result of its head flew off partway around the course. “Holding [the head] balanced whereas in motion is the most important problem for us,” mentioned Wang Ziyi, a 19-year-old pupil from Beijing Union College, who was a part of the group that entered the robotic.Ever since a troupe of humanoid dancing robots took the stage on the 2025 Spring Pageant Gala, a televised lunar new yr’s celebration considered almost 17bn occasions on-line, Beijing has been enthusiastically pushing the adoption of “embodied AI” – an business that was singled out on this yr’s authorities work report in March.One robotic needed to drop out of the 1500m partway as a result of its head flew off. {Photograph}: Kevin Frayer/Getty ImagesThe social-media-friendly occasions mirror a extra severe geopolitical actuality: an intensifying US-China technological competitors that would reshape the frontiers of AI.The know-how has grow to be a lightning rod for relations between the 2 nations. And whereas the US nonetheless has the lead on frontier analysis, owing partly to Washington’s restrictions on the export of cutting-edge chips to China, Beijing goes all-in on actual life functions, reminiscent of robotics.A number of cities, together with Beijing and Shanghai, have established 10bn yuan (£1bn) robotics business funds. In January, the state-owned Financial institution of China introduced plans for a 1tn yuan of economic help to the AI business over the subsequent 5 years.“If there may be an space the place [Beijing] thinks that China is forward, or might be positioned as a world chief, then they actually need to draw consideration to that space,” mentioned Dr Kyle Chan, a researcher at Princeton College.A robotic is carried off after a kickboxing match on the primary day of the video games. {Photograph}: China Information Service/Getty ImagesThere is one thing unusually ominous about seeing jerky, human-like robots with two arms, two legs, and clean heads being dragged out of the ring to be recharged by their human handlers.On the subject of humanoids, the Chinese language business has many benefits. Though US corporations reminiscent of Tesla and Boston Dynamics are nonetheless seen as the general market leaders, a number of Chinese language corporations reminiscent of UBTech and Unitree Robotics – which provided the boxing robots in Friday’s video games – are catching up.Tesla depends on China for lots of the elements wanted to construct the corporate’s bodily humanoids. The US funding financial institution Morgan Stanley estimates that China-based provide chains produce robots at a 3rd of the price of non-China suppliers. “It seems to be very troublesome to completely decouple from China on this house,” wrote Sheng Zhong, the financial institution’s head of China industrials analysis, in a current be aware.A robotic constructed by the Chinese language firm Unitree Robotics performs a standard drum. {Photograph}: Tingshu Wang/ReutersAs nicely as producing constructive publicity on social media, China views humanoids as being a part of the answer to the issues created by the nation’s ageing inhabitants and shrinking workforce. A current article in Folks’s Day by day, a mouthpiece of the Chinese language Communist get together, mentioned robots might provide sensible and emotional help for older folks. “The imaginative and prescient of robot-assisted aged care isn’t distant,” it mentioned. Humanoid robots might additionally take the place of workers on manufacturing unit strains as China tries to retrain and redeploy its workforce into extra hi-tech jobs.However for all of the hype, there’s a massive hole between humanoids stumbling over footballs and reliably dealing with day by day duties. Safely interacting with weak people can be one other leap. “The house might be one of many final locations you’ll ever discover a humanoid robotic due to security,” mentioned Chan. “My common view on the entire humanoid explosion … is actually a little bit of scepticism.”A technician works on humanoid robots on the sidelines of the video games. {Photograph}: Kevin Frayer/Getty ImagesTwo of the most important limitations to the know-how being helpful exterior of PR stunts are the complexity of the human-built surroundings and the fingers wanted to navigate it.Whereas different types of AI, reminiscent of giant language fashions, will be educated utilizing reams of digital knowledge, there are a lot smaller datasets out there for coaching an algorithm on how one can stroll by way of crowded eating places or up and down flights of stairs. Though China’s efforts to get robots out into the actual world might help corporations to reap extra knowledge, it’s nonetheless a giant bottleneck within the business, Chan mentioned.Dr Jonathan Aitken, a robotics instructor on the College of Sheffield, agreed. “The state of AI is nowhere close to seeing humanoids working out of uncontrolled environments,” he mentioned.And whereas robots leaping and kicking seems to be spectacular, mundane day by day duties reminiscent of dealing with a kitchen knife or folding laundry requires dexterous fingers, a ability know-how corporations have but to crack. A human hand has about 27 “levels of freedom” – ie, unbiased actions by way of house. Tesla’s Optimus humanoid, some of the superior fashions in the marketplace, has 22.Nonetheless, China has beat the chances earlier than with regards to turbocharged advances. Simply 10 years in the past, the nation exported fewer than 375,000 vehicles a yr. Now China is the world’s greatest vehicle provider, transport almost 6m autos yearly. The European Union has elevated tariffs on Chinese language-built electrical autos in an try to stem the movement.In China, the political and public will is firmly behind the humanoids. Zhan Guangtao got here to the humanoid video games along with her two daughters on Friday, after her elder little one’s college gave them free tickets. “It’s good to have my kids in contact with the world’s most superior robotics,” Zhan mentioned. “Exposing them to hi-tech will broaden their horizons.”Further analysis by Lillian Yang