China stages world’s first humanoid robot fighting tournament VIDEO

South China's Guangdong Province hosted what organizers described as the world's first freestyle combat competition for full-sized humanoid robots this week, with dozens of teams competing in a live tournament designed to push the boundaries of robotics research.

Held at the Shenzhen Nanshan Cultural and Sports Center in Guangdong Province, the event marked the debut of the Ultimate Robot Knock-out Legend (URKL), according to Chinese media outlets. 

The inaugural humanoid robot fighting competition organized by the local robotics company EngineAI.

One of the tournament's standout performers, a humanoid robot nicknamed "White Eagle," drew enthusiastic reactions from spectators as it exchanged punches, kicks and evasive maneuvers with its opponents in front of a live audience. Multiple videos shared on social media platforms show the smooth and quick moves delivered by the robots.

According to the organizers, 32 teams from around the world were selected to compete, with all participants using EngineAI's T800 full-size humanoid robot as the standardized competition platform. 

One of the opening bout's most dramatic moments came when a robot's head was knocked off during the fight. Despite losing its head-mounted sensing functions, the machine continued throwing punches and absorbing strikes, completing the match using the control systems housed in its torso.

EngineAI said the T800 stands 1.73 meters tall and is capable of performing advanced movements, including uppercuts, spinning kicks and rapid recovery after being knocked to the ground. The robot is equipped with posture control, dynamic perception and shock-absorbing capabilities designed to withstand high-intensity combat.

Tournament as testbed for robotics

EngineAI founder and CEO Zhao Tongyang said the tournament aims to establish a globally recognized commercial humanoid robot fighting league while accelerating technological innovation and industrial development.

"We want to use competition to drive research and industry development," Zhao said. "Let the event feed back into technology, and let technology drive the industry."

According to Zhao, the competition provides an opportunity to test frontier technologies, including mechanical balance, millisecond-level intelligent decision-making and multimodal sensor coordination. He added that data gathered from real combat scenarios could help accelerate the transition of intelligent humanoid robots from laboratory prototypes to commercial applications.

By Nazrin Sadigova