Robots sprinted, stumbled, and squared off in combat as China opened the world’s first World Humanoid Robot Games in Beijing. Over 500 robots from 16 countries competed in events ranging from football and kickboxing to medicine sorting and dance, part of a high-profile showcase of China’s ambitions in artificial intelligence and robotics.
The three-day competition, staged at the National Speed Skating Oval, built for the 2022 Winter Olympics, attracted global participants from universities and private enterprises, with teams hailing from the United States, Germany, Japan, Brazil, and China. More than 500 robots took part, many produced by Chinese manufacturers such as Unitree Robotics, X-Humanoid, and Booster Robotics.
From martial arts to 1,500 meters
Events included kickboxing bouts between pint-sized humanoids, athletic contests such as the 400-meter and 1,500-meter runs, football matches, and skills-based challenges testing robots’ ability to sort medicines, move materials, and perform cleaning services.
Chinese robotics firm Unitree’s H1 model dominated the opening 1,500-meter race, securing first and third place, with Beijing-based X-Humanoid’s Tien Kung Ultra placing second. Unitree founder and CEO Wang Xingxing told Phoenix News that the performance of its H1 robots was “meaningful,” as the model was the first humanoid the company ever made.
Yet technical hurdles were evident. Robots repeatedly collapsed during sprints, crashed into one another during football matches, and in one case, lost an arm mid-race. “Keeping [the head] balanced while in movement is the biggest challenge for us,” said Wang Ziyi, a 19-year-old student from Beijing Union University, after his team’s robot lost its head during a distance race.
Robots competed in events ranging from football, track and field, and table tennis to specialized tasks such as sorting medicines, handling materials, and cleaning services.
At the Beijing games, where tickets ranged from 128 to 580 yuan ($17.83–$80.77), humanoids at times crashed and toppled during football matches, with one game seeing four robots collide and collapse in a tangled heap. Others faltered mid-sprint during running events, drawing both gasps and applause from spectators.
Blending culture and technology
Beyond athletic contests, organizers highlighted robotics’ cultural potential. In one performance, four robots dressed in 3D-printed terracotta warrior armor beat drums while five others danced alongside a live performer. “With their dexterous hands, these humanoid robots hold drumsticks and execute precise strikes perfectly in time with the music,” said Gao Qian, deputy head of the academic affairs office of Beijing Dance Academy.
The troupe’s choreography, inspired by the Terracotta Warriors of China’s Qin Dynasty, won the first gold medal in the group dance event. “We are confident in showcasing traditional Chinese culture by integrating dance moves into robots’ movements,” Gao added.
Lou Kaiqi, deputy general manager of Optics Valley Dongzhi, the developer of the robots, said the performance required upgrades to motors, hardware, and algorithms. “If two robots sense that their distance is too close, they can autonomously make minor adjustments to their direction of travel to avoid veering off course or colliding with each other,” Lou explained.
🇨🇳 VIDEO: World's first humanoid robot games begin in China
— AFP News Agency (@AFP) August 16, 2025
Kicking, sprinting, twirling and even drumming, more than 500 androids take part in the world's first-ever humanoid robot games. pic.twitter.com/FalELTmjol
Strategic ambitions behind the spectacle
China has positioned humanoid robotics at the forefront of its artificial intelligence strategy. In March, Beijing announced a one-trillion-yuan ($139 billion) fund to support technology startups, including robotics and AI.
“Through the games, China has shown the world its strengths in humanoid robot design, industry chains and a large user base. Global AI developers can integrate their algorithms with China’s top-tier hardware to solve problems such as emergency rescue and household services,” said Zhou Changjiu, president of the RoboCup Asia-Pacific Confederation, one of the event’s organizers.
Analysts note that China’s drive reflects both domestic needs and geopolitical competition. With an aging population and strategic rivalry with the United States in advanced technologies, Beijing is investing billions in humanoids and “embodied AI.”
Research and reality
For international participants, the games were not only about competition but also experimentation. “We come here to play and to win. But we are also interested in research,” said Max Polter, a member of the HTWK Robots football team from Germany, affiliated with Leipzig University of Applied Sciences. “You can test a lot of interesting new and exciting approaches in this contest. If we try something and it doesn’t work, we lose the game. That’s sad but it is better than investing a lot of money into a product which failed.”
Joost Weerheim, a member of the Dutch five-a-side robot football team, told AFP he was struck by the rapid progress of Chinese robotics teams. “I think right now if they are not already the world leader, they are very, very quickly becoming it,” he said.
Despite frequent malfunctions and comic mishaps that drew cheers from audiences, engineers stressed the games provided valuable data. “The games serve as a platform to display our robot’s hardware performance and stable motion system,” said Shi Xuanyang, an engineer from RobotEra, whose L7 robot won gold in the standing high jump with a leap of 95.641 cm.
Organizers emphasized that the goal extends beyond public spectacle. “We hope to truly advance humanoid robots from the laboratory into real-world applications in factories, hospitals, homes and other scenarios. This is a crucial step toward achieving large-scale production,” said Li Zhiqi from the Beijing municipal government’s counsellors’ office.
Zhou Changjiu underlined why humanoids, in particular, matter: “From the height of bookshelves to toys children play with, everything in a house is created in accordance with human needs and based on human height and body shape. It is only a matter of time before humanoid robots enter households.”