Latest news with #THURobotics
Daily Mail
12 hours ago
- Sport
- Daily Mail
China's first 3-on-3 robot soccer match kicks off (and ends with two bots being stretched off the pitch...)
China 's first three-on-three robot soccer tournament kicked off in Beijing last Sunday. But the quality of play on show suggests that a robot won't be claiming the Ballon d'Or any time soon. As the AI-controlled bots shuffled slowly across the turf, they bumped into each other, toppled over, and only occasionally kicking the ball. By the time the final whistle blew, two bots had to be stretchered off the pitch after taking falls that would earn most human players a yellow card for diving. Cheng Hao, founder of Booster Robotics, which supplied the robots for the tournament, told the Global Times that the robots currently have the skills of five-to six-year-old children. However, Mr Hao believes that the robots' abilities will grow 'exponentially' and will soon be 'surpassing youth-level teams and eventually challenging adult teams'. In the future, Mr Hao even says that humans could play against robots in specially arranged matches. However, with the robots currently struggling to avoid collisions, more will need to be done to make the bots safe for humans to play with. The match took place as part of the ROBO league football tournament in Beijing, a test game ahead of China's upcoming 2025 World Humanoid Games. Four teams of engineers were each provided with robots and tasked with building the AI strategies which control everything from passing and shooting to getting up after a fall. Ultimately, THU Robotics from Tsinghua University defeated the Mountain Sea from China Agricultural University team five goals to three to win the championship. However, despite impressive advancements in robotics, the matches showed that robotics still has a long way to go. The robots struggle with what engineers call 'dynamic obstacle avoidance', which means they tend to run into other moving players despite moving only one meter per second. This was such an issue that the tournament's organizers had to use a specially made version of football's rules which allows more 'non-malicious collisions'. Likewise, although the robots were sometimes able to stand back up, human assistants sometimes had to step in and set them back on their feet. At one point in the match, the referee even had to hold back two robots as they blindly trampled a fallen teammate. These kinds of difficult scenarios are exactly why robotics researchers are so interested in using sports as testbeds for their technology. Sports involve multiple moving objects, rapidly changing situations and demand levels of teamwork and coordination that have long surpassed the capabilities of robots. Mr Cheng told the Global Times: 'We chose the football scenario for robot competition primarily for two reasons: first, to encourage students to apply their algorithmic skills to real-world robotics; second, to showcase the robots' ability to walk autonomously and stably, withstand collisions, and demonstrate higher levels of intelligence and safety.' Similarly, Google's DeepMind has used football to help test its learning algorithms, demonstrating miniature football-playing robots in 2023. China is currently pushing forward with its efforts to produce AI-powered humanoid robots, and is often using sports to show off their potential. This follows a recent kickboxing match between robots developed by Unitree Robotics as part of the China Media Group World Robot Competition. Similarly, 21 robots developed by Chinese manufacturers competed in the Yizhuang half marathon alongside thousands of humans. The winner, Tiangong Ultra, finished the race in two hours, 40 minutes and 42 seconds, but some robots struggled to complete the race.
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Sport
- Daily Mail
Footballers, your jobs are safe for now: Watch as China's first 3-on-3 robot football match kicks off (and ends with two bots being stretched off the pitch!)
China 's first three-on-three robot football tournament kicked off in Beijing last Sunday. But the quality of play on show suggests that a robot won't be claiming the Ballon d'Or any time soon. As the AI-controlled bots shuffled slowly across the turf, they bumped into each other, toppled over, and only occasionally even kicked the ball. By the time the final whistle blew, two bots had to be stretchered off the pitch after taking falls that would earn most human players a yellow card for diving. Cheng Hao, founder of Booster Robotics, which supplied the robots for the tournament, told the Global Times that the robots currently have the skills of five-to six-year-old children. However, Mr Hao believes that the robots' abilities will grow 'exponentially' and will soon be 'surpassing youth-level teams and eventually challenging adult teams'. In the future, Mr Hao even says that humans could play against robots in specially arranged matches. However, with the robots currently struggling to avoid collisions, more will need to be done to make the bots safe for humans to play with. The match took place as part of the ROBO league football tournament in Beijing, a test game ahead of China's upcoming 2025 World Humanoid Games. Four teams of engineers were each provided with robots and tasked with building the AI strategies which control everything from passing and shooting to getting up after a fall. Ultimately, THU Robotics from Tsinghua University defeated the Mountain Sea from China Agricultural University team five goals to three to win the championship. However, despite impressive advancements in robotics, the matches showed that robotics still has a long way to go. The robots struggle with what engineers call 'dynamic obstacle avoidance', which means they tend to run into other moving players despite moving only one metre per second. This was such an issue that the tournament's organisers had to use a specially made version of football's rules which allows more 'non-malicious collisions'. Likewise, although the robots were sometimes able to stand back up, human assistants sometimes had to step in and set them back on their feet. At one point in the match, the referee even had to hold back two robots as they blindly trampled a fallen teammate. These kinds of difficult scenarios are exactly why robotics researchers are so interested in using sports as testbeds for their technology. Sports involve multiple moving objects, rapidly changing situations and demand levels of teamwork and coordination that have long surpassed the capabilities of robots. Mr Cheng told the Global Times: 'We chose the football scenario for robot competition primarily for two reasons: first, to encourage students to apply their algorithmic skills to real-world robotics; second, to showcase the robots' ability to walk autonomously and stably, withstand collisions, and demonstrate higher levels of intelligence and safety.' Similarly, Google's DeepMind has used football to help test its learning algorithms, demonstrating miniature football-playing robots in 2023. China is currently pushing forward with its efforts to produce AI-powered humanoid robots, and is often using sports to show off their potential. This follows a recent kickboxing match between robots developed by Unitree Robotics as part of the China Media Group World Robot Competition. Similarly, 21 robots developed by Chinese manufacturers competed in the Yizhuang half marathon alongside thousands of humans. The winner, Tiangong Ultra, finished the race in two hours, 40 minutes and 42 seconds, but some robots struggled to complete the race. WILL YOUR JOB BE TAKEN BY A ROBOT? PHYSICAL JOBS ARE AT THE GREATEST RISK Physical jobs in predictable environments, including machine-operators and fast-food workers, are the most likely to be replaced by robots. Management consultancy firm McKinsey, based in New York, focused on the amount of jobs that would be lost to automation, and what professions were most at risk. The report said collecting and processing data are two other categories of activities that increasingly can be done better and faster with machines. This could displace large amounts of labour - for instance, in mortgages, paralegal work, accounting, and back-office transaction processing. Conversely, jobs in unpredictable environments are least are risk. The report added: 'Occupations such as gardeners, plumbers, or providers of child- and eldercare - will also generally see less automation by 2030, because they are technically difficult to automate and often command relatively lower wages, which makes automation a less attractive business proposition.'
Jordan News
2 days ago
- Science
- Jordan News
Humanoid Robots Compete in First-Ever Autonomous Football Championship - Jordan News
Humanoid Robots Compete in First-Ever Autonomous Football Championship Four fully autonomous teams of humanoid robots faced off in the final stage of the 'Robo League' football tournament held in Beijing, marking a major milestone in the integration of robotics and sports. اضافة اعلان In the championship match, "THU Robotics" from Tsinghua University defeated "Mountain Sea" from China Agricultural University with a score of 5–3, clinching the title on Saturday evening. The tournament, held in the Yizhuang Development Area, served as a prelude to the upcoming World Humanoid Robot Games, which will also take place in Beijing, according to a report by Interesting Engineering. What sets this competition apart is that no human intervention or control was used during gameplay. Each team consisted of three humanoid robots playing entirely autonomously, relying solely on AI algorithms and sensors. Each match was split into two 10-minute halves with a 5-minute halftime break. During the game, the robots walked (with a slight wobble), ran, kicked, chased the ball, and made real-time decisions—all independently. Equipped with optical cameras and sensors, the robots were able to track the ball from distances of up to 20 meters with over 90% accuracy, and identify key game elements such as field lines, goalposts, teammates, and opponents. Despite these capabilities, some limitations emerged, particularly in avoiding moving objects, leading organizers to adjust the rules to allow some non-intentional collisions without penalty. The Robo League is China's first robot football tournament with zero human control, highlighting the rapid advances in robotic vision, motion control, and autonomous decision-making. This event marks a significant step forward in demonstrating how humanoid robotics and AI can collaborate in complex, dynamic environments—laying the groundwork for future innovations in both technology and competitive robotics sports. Source: Al Arabiya اطرح سؤالك على ChatGPT
The Independent
3 days ago
- Sport
- The Independent
Collisions and collapses: how humanoids fared in their first football match
The first fully autonomous three-on-three humanoid football match, powered entirely by artificial intelligence, took place in Beijing as a preview for the upcoming World Humanoid Robot Games. During the event, some robots collapsed and had to be stretchered off by humans, despite being designed to self-right, while others struggled with kicking and experienced slow-motion collisions. China is using sports competitions, including football, boxing, and marathons, to accelerate the development of AI-powered humanoid robots. Cheng Hao, CEO of Booster Robotics, stated that these sports events are ideal for testing and refining both algorithms and integrated hardware-software systems, emphasising the importance of safety for future human interaction. Tsinghua University's THU Robotics team secured the championship, defeating China Agricultural University's Mountain Sea team with a final score of 5-3.
The Independent
3 days ago
- Sport
- The Independent
Inside the first AI-powered football match full of glitches
The first-ever fully autonomous three-on-three humanoid football match, powered entirely by artificial intelligence, was held in Beijing. During the games, some robots collapsed and had to be carried off on stretchers by humans, despite being designed to self-right, while others struggled with basic actions. The event served as a preview for the upcoming World Humanoid Robot Games in China, highlighting the country's strategy to advance AI -powered humanoid robots through sports competitions. Cheng Hao, CEO of Booster Robotics, stated that sports offer an ideal testing ground for developing humanoid robot algorithms and hardware-software systems, with safety being a primary concern for future human-robot interactions. Tsinghua University's THU Robotics team won the championship, defeating China Agricultural University's Mountain Sea team with a score of 5-3.
