China's humanoids face off in world’s first robot boxing tournament

The event, titled the Mecha Fighting Series, in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province on Sunday, featured robots delivering straight punches, hook punches, sidekicks, and aerial spin kicks. The machines also demonstrated the ability to recover from falls, highlighting advancements in balance, coordination, and durability, according to Interesting Engineering.

One match saw a robot in pink headgear claim victory, while the overall champion—wearing black headgear—won the title by delivering a knockout blow that caused the green-headgear opponent to lose balance and fall.

Unitree’s G1 model, which stands 1.32 meters tall and weighs 35 kilograms, is designed for complex environments. The robot combines advanced computing power with smooth motion control to offer high agility in a compact frame, the company said.

Chen Xiyun, a member of Unitree Robotics' marketing team, told the Global Times that the robots fought in a human-machine collaborative format, with four human teams operating them remotely. The tournament also served as a test of the robots’ battery endurance and material resilience, while showcasing their full-body coordination and upper limb capabilities under high-intensity conditions.

Developers said the robots underwent training to enhance self-balancing and movement precision before the event. The competition was also intended to accelerate research in robotic perception, control, and real-time execution.

Experts said the event highlights China’s progress in AI and robotics and offers a glimpse into future applications of humanoid machines in high-intensity scenarios. It also served as a real-time test of remote operation skills and robot adaptability in simulated combat conditions.