The players, which operate autonomously, are one result of China’s efforts to develop AI-powered humanoid robots.
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While China's men's football team hasn't generated much excitement in recent years, humanoid robot teams have won over fans in Beijing – based more on the artificial intelligence (AI) technology involved than any actual athletic prowess.
In China's capital on Saturday night, four teams of humanoid robots faced off in fully autonomous 3-on-3 football matches powered entirely by AI.
It was touted as a first in China and a preview for the upcoming World Humanoid Robot Games, set to take place in Beijing.
According to the organisers, a key aspect of the match was that all the participating robots operated fully autonomously using AI-driven strategies without any human intervention or supervision.
Equipped with advanced visual sensors, the robots were able to identify the ball and navigate the field with agility
They were also designed to stand up on their own after falling. However, during the match several still had to be carried off the field on stretchers by staff, adding to the realism of the experience.
The match was one result of China’s stepped up efforts to develop AI-powered humanoid robots, using sports competitions like marathons, boxing, and football as a real-world proving ground.
Cheng Hao, founder and CEO of Booster Robotics, the company that supplied the robot players, said sports competitions offer the ideal testing ground for humanoid robots, helping to accelerate the development of both algorithms and integrated hardware-software systems.
He also emphasised safety as a core concern in the application of humanoid robots.
“In the future, we may arrange for robots to play football with humans,” Cheng said. “That means we must ensure the robots are completely safe”.