2025 World Humanoid Robot Games: Cutting-edge tech takes center stage in Beijing

The 2025 World Humanoid Robot Games kicked off Thursday in Beijing, showcasing the latest advances in humanoid robots, including intelligent decision-making and collaborative movement.

At the opening ceremony, humanoid robots dazzled the audience with performances including hip-hop dancing, martial arts, playing musical instruments and Chinese opera. Some robots demonstrated sports such as soccer and boxing, while others performed gymnastics and backflips. The robots also walked alongside human models, showcasing customized clothing that combined 3D printing with handcrafted elements.

The Games, held at the National Speed Skating Oval, will feature 280 teams from 16 countries, including the United States, Germany and Italy, competing from Friday to Sunday. Competitors will take part in 26 events, ranging from athletic challenges such as running, long jump, free exercises and football to skills-based tasks like material handling, drug sorting and cleaning across different scenarios.

According to Li Yechuan of the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Economy and Information Technology, the event adapts the formats of human competitive sports to rigorously test the latest humanoid robot innovations.

"We hope to truly advance humanoid robots from the laboratory into real-world applications in factories, hospitals, homes and other scenarios. This is a crucial step toward achieving large-scale production," said Li Zhiqi from the Beijing municipal government's counsellors' office.

The sports event follows the 2025 World Robot Conference, which opened on August 8 under the theme "Making Robots Smarter, Making Embodied Agents More Intelligent."

(With input from Xinhua)