More than 500 athletes recently competed at an Olympic-style event. They raced, jumped, boxed, played soccer, and more. But the athletes never got tired or broke a sweat. That’s because they were robots!
The first World Humanoid Robot Games took place in Beijing, China, over the summer. Humanoid robots are designed to look and move like people. A total of 280 teams from 16 countries took part. Chinese company Unitree Robotics was the big winner, taking home 11 medals. But the event wasn’t all about winning or losing. The main goal was to show how far robotics has come. Some robots showed off non-sports skills, like playing musical instruments.
“It’s almost like a talent show for all the robots,” explains Sooyeon Jeong. She’s a robot expert.
But the Games showed that robots won’t be ready to take on humans anytime soon. The robots face-planted—a lot. Soccer-playing robots tripped over each other and the ball. Others overheated and had to be fanned down.
“There are so many things that humans, even babies, can do naturally that are very difficult for robots,” says Jeong.