Unitree Robotics, a Zhejiang-based company, has stunned the world with its G1 humanoid robot’s ability to perform side-flips and kick-ups, a significant improvement from its predecessor H1’s backflip performed a year ago.
On March 19, the company released footage showing its G1 robot performing a standing side flip. It highlighted “zero malfunctions/damage occurred during programming and filming.”
Last Friday, it released another video showing its G1 robot “nails the world’s first kip-up,” or kick-up. The robot can also do sweeping kicks and tai chi and balance itself after being kicked in the back.
Following Unitree G1’s side-flip video, American rival Boston Dynamics published a video showing its Atlas robot doing cartwheels and breakdance sweeping. The company said the work was done as part of its research partnership with the Robotics and AI Institute (RAI Institute).
Based on all the available footage, robot fans have noted Unitree’s G1 and Boston Dynamic’s Atlas have different strengths—G1 is lighter, cheaper and more agile, while Atlas can do practical tasks more precisely. They assessed Boston Dynamics’ robots are more advanced because the company has accumulated decades of experience.
However, the technological gap between American and Chinese humanoid robots has narrowed over the past year with the rise of Nvidia’s Issac Sim technology.
According to Nvidia’s website, Isaac Sim is an application built on Nvidia Omniverse that enables developers to simulate and test AI-driven robotic solutions in physically based virtual environments. In other words, humanoid robots use AI technology to mirror a person’s movements.
To run the latest version of Issac Sim efficiently, a computer must have Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 4080 graphics processing unit (GPU).
Currently, Chinese companies can import as many RTX 4080 as they want because the Biden administration only banned the export of RTX 4090 and higher models to China in October 2023.
In a document posted on its website in May 2024, Unitree said it used Nvidia’s RTX A4000 to build its Isaac Gym, an open-source application on the Isaac Sim platform. Speed tests showed that the RTX A4000 is slower than the RTX 4080.
Beating Boston Dynamics?
Some Chinese commentators are amazed that Unitree G1 can do side-flips while Atlas can only perform cartwheels.
“Unitree has already surpassed Boston Dynamics by a far distance,” a Hebei-based IT columnist enthuses in an article published by ThePaper.cn on March 21.
“In the past, Unitree Founder Wang Xingxing opposed the idea of making humanoid robots as he had tried it in 2009 and thought that his company could not handle it,” the writer says. “Wang knew that even if Unitree could produce some humanoid robots, they would only be some big toys with no room for commercialization.”
He says this was why Wang focused on making robot dogs. According to China’s Gaogong Industry Research (GGII), Unitree sold 23,700 robot dogs with a 70% global market share last year, while Boston Dynamics sold only 2,000 units.
He says Unitree’s Go2 robot dog costs only about 10,000 yuan (US$1,376) while Boston Dynamics’ Spot is 50 times more expensive at $75,000.
“Unitree started developing humanoid robots in 2023 due to the rise of AI technology,” he says. “Boston Dynamics was late in using AI and over-relied on traditional algorithms. “
Besides, the writer argues Boston Dynamics “wasted 11 years” in shareholder changes and made a big mistake by insisting on using hydraulic systems for 30 years. He says Unitree chose the right path as it uses electric motors and enjoys the advantages of China’s electronic manufacturing industry.
In May 2024, Boston Dynamics announced the retirement of its hydraulically bipedal humanoid robot and unveiled the fully electric Atlas robot. It released a video titled “Farewell to HD Atlas,” showing the bulky hydraulic robot’s setbacks.
A recent Goldman Sach report noted Unitree’s robots can jump and dance, but they can’t yet replace humans for various tasks due to an inability to do precise work such as screwing and welding. The report said it may take five years for Unitree’s robots to be deployed to factories and homes and be commercialized.
Other Chinese pundits hope Agibot, co-founded by Peng Zhihui, a former member of Huawei’s “Genius Youth” program, can fill the market gap.
Last December, the Shanghai-based Agibot, also known as Zhiyuan Robotics, started mass production of a bipedal robot called A2 and its wheeled version A2-W, which has AI-powered arms to work in warehouses and factories.
On March 10 this year, the company unveiled LingXi X2, a home-use robot powered by its new controlling system GO-1 (Genie Operator-1). The company said the robot can restock bags and beverages, clean tables, pour water and fold shorts. It can also ride bicycles, cook and care for the elderly and children.
Agibot said Tuesday (March 25) it planned to produce 3,000 to 5,000 robots in 2025, up from less than 1,000 units last year.
Tesla founder Elon Musk said on March 21 that his company will make about 5,000 Optimus robots this year and 50,000 units in 2026.
Nvidia’s new open-source tool
On March 18, Nvidia launched Isaac GROOT N1, the world’s first open foundation model for generalized humanoid robot reasoning and skills.
The company said humanoid robots are designed to adapt to human workspaces and tackle repetitive or demanding tasks. Still, it is difficult to build dedicated AI models for each of these real-world tasks. It said Isaac GR00T N1 can help build an open-source database for all robot makers.
According to Nvidia, the tool needs an RTX A6000 or an RTX 4090 GPU for post-training. Nvidia’s DGX Spark or DGX H100 systems are needed for more demanding tasks.
The US has already banned the export of all these GPUs to China, but some observers said Chinese firms may be using smuggled chips.
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