World’s first robot boxing match to be held in China

Unitree’s G1 bot will fight for the title of the ‘Iron Fist King’ against another child-sized humanoid robot

The Unitree G1 robot has been designed to kick and punch, as well as take heavy impacts and falls (Unitree)

A Chinese robotics firm has announced the world’s first boxing match between two child-sized humanoid robots.

The event, organised by Hangzhou-based Unitree, will see two G1 robots face each other for the title of the “Iron Fist King”, which will be live streamed next month.

A promotional video shows the 1.32-metre-tall Unitree G1 robot spar with a human opponent, dodging blows and keeping its balance.

Unitree says the bot comes equipped with a motion-capture training system that “enables pro-level performance” and “continuously learns new skills”.

The video also showed the robot punching, kicking and recovering from heavy impacts, though its movements were considerably slower than a human’s.

The boxing event will come less than a month after the world’s first half marathon with humanoid robot participants, which took place in Beijing in April.

Only six of the 21 robotic runners completed the 21km race, with none completing it in less than 2.5 hours.

A Unitree G1 robot was an unofficial entry at the event, making headlines for falling over at the start line.

Unitree is one of six separate robotics firms in China aiming to mass produce humanoid robots this year, all integrated with artificial intelligence.

China is already the largest industrial robot market globally, accounting for more than half of all robot installations worldwide.

Figures from Fortune Business Insights estimated China’s industrial robot market was worth just over $6 billion last year.

The robotics industry is projected to be worth more than $200 billion by 2030, according to separate forecasts from GlobalData, with humanoid robots forming a considerable role.

Other Chinese firms have demonstrated humanoid robots capable of fulfilling non-industrial roles, such as caring for the elderly or performing household chores.