Chinese robotics leader Unitree took full advantage of the country’s New Year celebrations this week to demonstrate the impressive capabilities of its humanoid robot G1.
A video (above) of the event shows numerous G1 robots taking part in what Unitree called “the world’s first fully autonomous humanoid kung fu performance.” There is also a bit of breakdancing.
The robots demonstrated incredible agility and coordination when they appeared alongside children from Tagou Martial Arts School at the Spring Festival Gala on China Central TV. They moved at a speed of about three meters per second while performing somersaults, table jumps, somersaults and rapid formation changes, combining martial arts with innovations in robotics.
The robots were recently upgraded with improved, more dexterous hands that enabled quick switching and stable gripping of martial arts equipment such as nunchucks during this week’s performance, Global Times reported.
Wang
Wang described the innovations as “very practical” and said they would “facilitate large-scale deployment of robots in the future.”
The 132 centimeter tall G1 robot was introduced in May 2024 and became available three months later for $16,000. The bipedal bot is designed for research, education, entertainment and light industrial applications, with researchers, students and developers encouraged to program and customize the robot for various tasks.
Unitree also has a full-size humanoid robot called H1, which stands about 180 centimeters tall. The H1 is more robust and powerful and designed for industrial use, while the more compact G1 emphasizes agility and affordability and is aimed more at research and entertainment.
Unitree aims to ship about 20,000 humanoid robots this year, nearly four times as many as last year.
It competes with a number of robotics companies in China, the United States and beyond, all vying to find meaningful and manageable roles for their humanoid robots in industrial settings.
The G1 also made headlines earlier this month when it took on an autonomous walking challenge in deep snow and brutal cold.
