Humanoid robots delivered a efficiency Thursday night time that has the leisure world asking if machines might quickly replace dwell breakdancers.

Six robots from Unitree Robotics took the stage alongside Chinese American singer Wang Leehom throughout his live performance in Chengdu, executing strikes that may make skilled B-Boys take discover.

The robots didn’t simply stand and sway. They carried out coordinated arm motions, leg kicks, turns and jumps that stayed completely synced with the music throughout Leehom’s efficiency of “Open Fire.”

But the true showstopper got here when all six machines executed Webster flips concurrently – a transfer that requires severe athletic talent when people try it.

Dressed in silver sequined outfits, the robots moved with precision that human dancers spend years making an attempt to attain. Videos from the live performance present the machines hitting each beat with out lacking a step.

The efficiency was so polished that some viewers members didn’t instantly notice they had been watching robots as a substitute of human performers.

Elon Musk took notice of the display, resharing footage on X and calling the efficiency “impressive,” exhibiting that robots have moved past easy, repetitive duties into artistic expression as soon as completely human territory.

Just months in the past, throughout China’s Spring Festival Gala, robots had been restricted to fundamental actions, equivalent to spinning handkerchiefs. Now they’re executing complicated acrobatic sequences that rival skilled dance crews.

Unitree Robotics has been growing what they name “Keep the music Going, Keep the Dance Flowing” expertise since February.

This system permits their G1 robots to take care of synchronized motion with music throughout completely different fashions and variations. The firm isn’t stopping at live performance performances; they’re exploring how these robots might carry out dance routines in on a regular basis settings.

The implications for Hip-Hop tradition and breakdancing are important. Breakdancing requires years of coaching, bodily conditioning and inventive expression. But robots don’t get drained, don’t miss rehearsals and might carry out the identical routine flawlessly night time after night time.

They may also execute strikes that could be too harmful for human performers or preserve excellent synchronization throughout giant teams.

Social media customers have been debating whether or not this expertise indicators the tip of human dancers in dwell leisure. Some praised the robots’ technical precision whereas others anxious about dropping the human aspect that makes dance an artwork type.

There’s no must concern: whereas robots can grasp technical strikes, they lack the improvisation, emotion and cultural connection that human dancers carry to the artwork type.

The query turns into whether or not audiences will settle for technical perfection over human creativity and soul.

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