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Chinese humanoid robots play soccer for the first time

Jul 2, 2025, 2:30pm EDT
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Booster T1’s humanoid robot football players compete in the inaugural domestic 3v3 AI-powered robot football match.
Fu Ding/Beijing Youth Daily/VCG via Getty

Over the weekend, four teams of robots faced off in a first-of-its-kind, fully autonomous soccer tournament in Beijing, the Associated Press reported.

Humanoid robots supplied by Beijing-based Booster Robotics chased the ball and navigated through other players using visual sensors. They even stood after falling without human assistance, though some were taken away on stretchers with apparent injuries.

While the hardware came from Booster Robotics, students from Chinese universities developed each team’s algorithms and playing strategies. The event acted as a preview to the World Humanoid Robot Games in August, with events including soccer, gymnastics, and long jump.

The fanfare also demonstrated China’s robotics prowess against the US. “It is becoming apparent that national support for ‘embodied AI’ may be far greater in China than in any other nation, driving continued innovation,” Morgan Stanley’s Sheng Zhong said in a report. “In our opinion, China’s lead in AI-robotics may need to widen before rivals, including the U.S., pay closer attention.”

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