Robots step up their game

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From dancing last year to outrunning Usain Bolt this year, humanoid robots have rapidly evolved at the second World Humanoid Robot Games, which concluded on Wednesday at Beijing's National Speed Skating Oval.

The competition, which began on Aug 22, drew a record 2,056 robots in 666 teams from 16 countries across six continents. They competed in 51 disciplines, including sprinting, obstacle races, tennis, weightlifting, soccer, and tug-of-war.

The event brought artificial intelligence and athletic competition together in a vivid showcase of advances in robotics, putting humanoid robots through a broad range of physical challenges.

On the obstacle course, robots climbed onto elevated platforms and cleared hurdles with measured strides. Success depended on stable gait transitions, balance and depth perception.

During an opening human-versus-machine demonstration, robots shared the court with Chinese tennis great Zheng Jie and took to the court to return her shots. To do so, they had to recognize an incoming ball, position their bodies and execute a swing, a sequence that remains difficult for bipedal machines.

Weightlifting tested joint torque and whole-body coordination under load, as mechanical arms gripped barbells and attempted controlled lifts.

On the soccer pitch, robots leaped and flipped as they attempted to kick the ball. In tug-of-war, humanoid competitors pulled ropes taut while maintaining traction and posture against an opposing force, exposing the challenges of balance and power delivery.

Yet, the games were far more than a playful robot contest. Familiar sports, from running and ball games to strength-based events, served as proving grounds for robot mobility, balance, dexterity and real-time decision-making.

Stumbles and mechanical failures were frequent, but they also offered an unvarnished picture of technological iteration. By translating aspects of human movement into machines, the games showed how artificial intelligence and robotics are expanding the physical capabilities of humanoid robots, while offering a glimpse of a future shaped by human-robot coexistence.

The events were designed to test not only individual components such as vision, grasping or walking, but also how effectively a robot's "brain, hands and feet" work together.

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