Four AI-powered robots, each tipping the scales at 35 kilograms and standing a modest 132 centimeters tall, duked it out in China’s World Robot Competition Mecha Fighting Series. These pint-sized pugilists, controlled by humans but powered by AI, squared off in three rounds of two-minute kickboxing madness, with points deciding who danced away victorious.
Human-Controlled Robots with a Cheeky AI Twist
Chen Xiyun from Unitree spilled the tea: “Robots fight in a human-machine collab,” meaning these bots had pre-programmed moves but humans were still pulling the strings. Each robot showed off a variety of kicks and punches ahead of the competition to help fine-tune the rules. The scoring was straightforward but brutal: a punch to the head earned 1 point, a kick to the head scored a hefty 3 points, and if your robot took a tumble or stayed down for more than 8 seconds, you lost 5 or 10 points, respectively. Talk about a high-stakes game of robot boxing!
Unitree’s director Wang Qixin also revealed the tech magic behind the scenes. Using AI and motion capture from professional fighters, the robots were schooled in real fight moves inside a virtual training ground before hitting the ring. So, these weren’t just any clunky bots, they were virtual martial arts students ready to throw down.
🤖 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! 🥊pic.twitter.com/vkODcSbPoQ
— Chinese Embassy in US (@ChineseEmbinUS) May 26, 2025
Drama in the Ring and a Champion Emerges
In one of the first electrifying matches, a pink-helmeted robot clashed with a black-helmeted rival. After some slightly off-target punches and kicks (because hey, bots are still learning), the black bot took a spill after a wild kick attempt. But the comeback was real, the black bot landed a solid front kick in round three that knocked the pink bot down, then jumped on it to claim victory.
With pink and another red-helmeted bot eliminated, the black bot faced off against a green-helmeted contender in the finals. After a tough bout, the black bot was declared champion by outscoring its opponent, proving that AI and human collaboration can make one tough robot fighter.
And the robot showdown isn’t over, brace yourself for December, when full-sized bots will battle it out in Guangdong Province, South China. Robot boxing just got a serious upgrade!
Kristian Koch
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