Latest news with #autonomousRobots
Fox News
2 days ago
- Sport
- Fox News
Autonomous humanoid robot soccer debuts in China
In a futuristic showdown that captured global attention, four teams of autonomous humanoid robots competed in China's first AI-powered soccer tournament. The event took place in Beijing's Yizhuang Development Zone as part of the Robo League robot football tournament, marking a significant milestone for real-world artificial intelligence competition in China. Sign up for my FREE CyberGuy ReportGet my best tech tips, urgent security alerts and exclusive deals delivered straight to your inbox. Plus, you'll get instant access to my Ultimate Scam Survival Guide — free when you join my Unlike remote-controlled robot matches, this tournament featured zero human intervention. Each team had three active humanoid robots plus a substitute, playing two ten-minute halves with a five-minute break. The robots ran, walked, kicked and even made real-time decisions using AI and sensors. Cameras and optical sensors allowed them to detect the ball from 65 feet away with more than 90% accuracy. They also recognized teammates, field markings, goals and opponents. Despite a slightly awkward gait, the robots operated fully on their own, acting and reacting without any external commands. "This is the first fully autonomous AI robot football match in China. It represents a combination of technological innovation and industrial application," said Dou Jing, executive director of the organizing committee. Beyond entertainment, the event offered a serious glimpse into how AI and robotics could integrate into public life. It demonstrated how far real-world autonomy has come and how these systems can function in unpredictable environments. Dou added that the match was a step toward bringing intelligent machines into everyday scenarios. The event also served as a preview for the 2025 World Humanoid Robot Sports Games, which will be hosted in Beijing from August 15-17. The games will include eleven events modeled after traditional sports, including track and field, gymnastics, soccer and synchronized dancing. It will be the city's second major humanoid sports event after a half-marathon. Organizers noted that while the robots still face challenges, such as dynamic obstacle avoidance, progress is happening quickly. For this event, collisions were allowed as long as they were not malicious. One co-organizer compared the level of play to that of 5 or 6-year-old children but expressed optimism that skill levels would improve with better hardware and AI training. The THU Robotics team from Tsinghua University defeated the Mountain Sea team from China Agricultural University 5-3. Earlier, China also hosted a humanoid vs. human long-distance race, where the top robot completed a 13-mile course in two hours and 40 minutes. The fastest human finished in just over one hour, but the comparison showed how far walking robots have come. As Beijing prepares to host the 2025 global games, robot soccer is starting to feel less like a gimmick and more like a glimpse into how intelligent machines could soon play a significant role in our everyday lives. Watching robots play soccer without any human help is a peek into where AI and robotics are headed. These machines are learning fast, and while they're still a little wobbly, the future of autonomous technology looks anything but uncertain. If this is the starting point, imagine what they'll be capable of in just a few years. Would you stream a robot soccer match? Or is AI just not your kind of athlete? Let us know by writing to us at Sign up for my FREE CyberGuy ReportGet my best tech tips, urgent security alerts and exclusive deals delivered straight to your inbox. Plus, you'll get instant access to my Ultimate Scam Survival Guide — free when you join my Copyright 2025 All rights reserved.
Geek Wire
16-06-2025
- Business
- Geek Wire
A high-tech harvest: Innovative lending library brings bots to Washington farms
Steve Mantle, company CEO and founder (left) and Simon Fuentes, field technician, demonstrate how to use a Burro autonomous robot to plant squash seedlings. The robot is available free-of-charge local farmers through the Snohomish County Ag Tech program. ( Photo) A first-of-its-kind program to put cutting-edge agriculture technology into the hands of farmers is blossoming among hay, corn and berry operations north of Seattle. Snohomish County has launched a free technology lending library for small- and medium-sized farms, allowing growers to borrow autonomous robots that can carry, mow and tow; devices for monitoring soil moisture to optimize irrigation; and survey technology that analyzes soil properties across a field to guide fertilization. 'We are doing this at no cost to the farms,' Linda Neunzig, the agriculture coordinator for the county who came up with the library idea. 'They're not putting anything at risk, and there are so many benefits.' Farming has slim margins and is facing challenging labor shortages, leading Neunzig to search for ways to help farms stay viable and in business. Technology was a clear answer, but it can be expensive, new applications are unfamiliar, and many of the tools available are targeting large-scale commodity agriculture. Linda Neunzig, Snohomish County's agriculture coordinator and lead for its ag tech lending library. (Snohomish County Photo_ Snohomish County Ag Tech has been investigating technologies that could be useful for its farmers and recently started making them available through the library. The program, which includes the farm analytics startup as a contractor, on Friday filmed tech demos that will be posted on YouTube and a county TV station to promote the effort. The Western Washington county blends urban hubs such as Everett and Lynnwood with pastoral rural areas. Farming here includes livestock feed production of corn, hay and grass; plots growing goods for farmers markets and CSA programs; and agritourism serving pumpkin patches visitors and U-pick experiences, plus food production. Steve Mantle, CEO and founder of said young farmers in particular are eager to make operations more efficient and less laborious — potentially convincing them to take over multi-generational, family-run farms. The chance to use the devices with support from makes the technology 'tangible and actionable and approachable,' said Mantle, who was at Microsoft for more than a decade. His company offers data mining and can interpret impacts from using the devices and help guide farmers in decision making. The county program also benefits ag tech startups, allowing farmers to test the technology in the literal field and provide companies with feedback — while also potentially generating sales. 'What I said to the farmers is 'be creative,'' Neunzig said, and they've followed the prompt. A Christmas tree farmer was the first to check out a robot from a company called Burro. The farm loaded up the autonomous device with fertilizer, and it rolled between rows of trees alongside workers who dispersed the fertilizer by hand. It saved the workers from pushing heavy wheelbarrows and the time needed to go back and forth for refills. Simon Fuentes (right), an field technician, explains how farmers can use soil sensors to monitor moisture and temperatures for more efficient water use. The sensors are available free-of-charge through Snohomish County's Ag Tech program. ( Photo) A dairy farm last week used a Burro robot to independently haul a trailer that carries milk for feeding calves, creating a smooth delivery system that eliminated starts and stops and allowed workers to quickly swap out bottles. 'I never would have thought of that,' Neunzig said. An earlier demo of water monitoring technology allowed a farm to cut its water use by 75%, she said, which in addition to the cost savings for the farmer also provides benefits to salmon, food security and soil health. The county's ag tech program is supported by Washington State Department of Ecology's Floodplains by Design grants. It has received two, three-year grants that together total $1.6 million. Some of the dollars go toward purchasing the devices for the library. Going forward, Neunzig is particularly interested in finding machines deploying tech such as lasers and sprays to aid with weeding, which is extremely labor intensive. Washington companies tackling this problem include Carbon Robotics, Aigen and Lisi Global. While the lending library is new, expanding and still launching promotions, Neunzig is hearing from other government agencies and tribal organizations interested in the model. 'They've already started,' she said. 'I get contacted all of the time.'
