WEBVTT 1 00:00:01.199 --> 00:00:06.200 Welcome to the Sentient Code, where intelligence is engineered, autonomy 2 00:00:06.280 --> 00:00:10.439 is emerging, and a line between human and machine grows thinner. 3 00:00:10.800 --> 00:00:15.359 Each episode, we decode the algorithms, explore the robotics, and 4 00:00:15.439 --> 00:00:22.640 examine the ideas shaping the future of artificial minds. 5 00:00:23.920 --> 00:00:27.039 Okay, so let's start with the date, just to kind 6 00:00:27.039 --> 00:00:28.199 of anchor ourselves in time. 7 00:00:28.320 --> 00:00:28.879 Good idea. 8 00:00:29.039 --> 00:00:33.479 It is Tuesday, February seventeenth, twenty twenty six. And you know, 9 00:00:33.520 --> 00:00:36.679 for a lot of people today is probably that slow 10 00:00:36.759 --> 00:00:37.679 day back at work. 11 00:00:37.799 --> 00:00:41.000 Oh yeah, nursing the food coma from yesterday's. 12 00:00:40.479 --> 00:00:44.240 Celebrations exactly too many dumplings, too many New Year cakes. 13 00:00:44.679 --> 00:00:46.439 But the date that I think is really going to 14 00:00:46.439 --> 00:00:50.039 be circled in the history books of well of technology. Yeah, 15 00:00:50.119 --> 00:00:51.560 it isn't today, It was yesterday. 16 00:00:51.640 --> 00:00:54.280 It really really feels like the tectonic plates of the 17 00:00:54.399 --> 00:00:57.280 entire tech world shifted while we were all just, you know, 18 00:00:57.359 --> 00:00:59.280 sitting on the couch watching TV last night. 19 00:00:59.280 --> 00:01:02.000 Doesn't It absolutely does. We are, of course, talking about 20 00:01:02.039 --> 00:01:05.200 the day after the lunar New Year celebration. We are 21 00:01:05.239 --> 00:01:09.680 here to unpack the massive, the overwhelming, the just record 22 00:01:09.719 --> 00:01:15.359 breaking twenty twenty six CCTV Spring Festival Gala or tune. 23 00:01:15.200 --> 00:01:17.359 One, which, and we should probably explain this for anyone 24 00:01:17.359 --> 00:01:21.000 who isn't familiar, is the single most watched television event 25 00:01:21.120 --> 00:01:22.359 on the planet period. 26 00:01:22.680 --> 00:01:26.200 It is truly, truly mind boggling. I think for our listeners, 27 00:01:26.280 --> 00:01:29.560 especially maybe in North America or Europe, we always use 28 00:01:29.879 --> 00:01:33.640 the super Bowl as the benchmark for a big TV event. 29 00:01:33.760 --> 00:01:37.159 Sure, the halftime show, the commercials, it's a cultural touchstone, 30 00:01:37.280 --> 00:01:37.799 it is. 31 00:01:37.920 --> 00:01:40.599 But we have to completely recalibrate our scales here. We 32 00:01:40.640 --> 00:01:42.599 need a whole new frame of reference. Oh. 33 00:01:42.599 --> 00:01:45.000 Absolutely, the super Bowl is huge, don't get me wrong. 34 00:01:45.040 --> 00:01:48.280 It's a massive cultural moment in the US. But the 35 00:01:48.319 --> 00:01:51.560 Spring Festival Gala, you are looking at an audience that 36 00:01:51.719 --> 00:01:56.920 regularly consistently hits between five hundred and seven hundred million 37 00:01:57.120 --> 00:01:57.920 live viewers. 38 00:01:57.959 --> 00:02:00.879 That number doesn't even sound real. Five hundred million. 39 00:02:00.920 --> 00:02:03.120 It's half a billion people minimum. 40 00:02:02.640 --> 00:02:05.719 Watching the same program at the exact same time. It's wild. 41 00:02:05.879 --> 00:02:08.360 It's a cultural monolith. It's the background noise of the 42 00:02:08.360 --> 00:02:11.719 new year for nearly what twenty percent of the human population. 43 00:02:11.840 --> 00:02:12.080 Yeah. 44 00:02:12.159 --> 00:02:14.840 Usually it's a mix of pop stars, maybe some comedy sketches. 45 00:02:14.879 --> 00:02:17.680 Traditional dancer is a bit of magic. But this year 46 00:02:18.280 --> 00:02:22.439 the theme wasn't just celebration. It felt like a vision statement. 47 00:02:22.840 --> 00:02:26.879 It was a reveal, a very loud, very very expensive reveal. 48 00:02:27.120 --> 00:02:30.120 Because normally you expect maybe a little cameo from a 49 00:02:30.159 --> 00:02:33.319 piece of tech, a drone swarm in the sky forming 50 00:02:33.400 --> 00:02:33.960 a dragon. 51 00:02:34.159 --> 00:02:36.400 Maybe we've seen that rite a bit of tech spectacle. 52 00:02:36.639 --> 00:02:39.919 But this year the stage was absolutely taken over by 53 00:02:40.039 --> 00:02:43.879 humanoid robots and not just you know, standing in the background. 54 00:02:44.000 --> 00:02:45.080 They were the main character. 55 00:02:45.199 --> 00:02:47.479 It was an unprecedented focus. We aren't talking about a 56 00:02:47.479 --> 00:02:49.719 cute little cameo where a robot waves at the camera 57 00:02:49.759 --> 00:02:52.479 and it never goes ah how neat. This was a 58 00:02:52.560 --> 00:02:57.319 humanoid robotics revolution, broadcast live to the entire world. It 59 00:02:57.400 --> 00:02:59.960 was a statement that the hardware has finally caught up 60 00:03:00.120 --> 00:03:00.759 to the hype. 61 00:03:00.879 --> 00:03:02.840 I mean, I watched it live and I'm still trying 62 00:03:02.840 --> 00:03:06.560 to process the sheer absurdity and the wonder of the visuals. 63 00:03:06.919 --> 00:03:10.120 We had robots performing kung fu, We had robots doing 64 00:03:10.120 --> 00:03:12.560 the drump and fists, which is insane, and we had 65 00:03:12.599 --> 00:03:17.800 them interacting with children on stage live. It was completely. 66 00:03:17.080 --> 00:03:20.680 Surreal and it wasn't chip surrealism either. This wasn't some 67 00:03:20.759 --> 00:03:23.599 creative director just having a wild idea and using like 68 00:03:23.719 --> 00:03:28.240 Cgi or bubbeteers. This was a strategic partnership, a very 69 00:03:28.240 --> 00:03:32.159 public one. It evolved four of the leading startups in 70 00:03:32.159 --> 00:03:36.719 the sector, Unitree, Magic Lab, Galbot and Noatics. 71 00:03:37.120 --> 00:03:39.719 And there was serious money involved here, right, This wasn't 72 00:03:39.759 --> 00:03:40.680 just for the exposure. 73 00:03:40.800 --> 00:03:44.120 Oh no. The reports suggest the partnership deals were worth 74 00:03:44.560 --> 00:03:46.080 around one hundred million YU on. 75 00:03:46.400 --> 00:03:50.080 Which is roughly what fourteen million US dollars About that. 76 00:03:50.199 --> 00:03:53.400 Yeah, but the value goes way way beyond the cash. 77 00:03:53.439 --> 00:03:56.719 This was a signal. It was a statement about embodied AI. 78 00:03:57.039 --> 00:03:59.960 Embodied AI, that's the phrase I keep hearing this morning. 79 00:04:00.120 --> 00:04:02.680 It sounds so sci fi, but I guess here we are. 80 00:04:02.879 --> 00:04:05.520 Well, it's the idea that artificial intelligence isn't just a 81 00:04:05.639 --> 00:04:08.000 chat bot in your browser anymore. But it's not just 82 00:04:08.039 --> 00:04:10.520 a large language model living in a server farm somewhere 83 00:04:10.520 --> 00:04:12.080 in the desert. It has a body. It has a 84 00:04:12.080 --> 00:04:14.919 body you can move, it can act, it can manipulate 85 00:04:14.960 --> 00:04:16.959 the physical world, and as we saw last night, it 86 00:04:17.000 --> 00:04:21.040 can perform martial arts with frankly terrifying precision. 87 00:04:21.199 --> 00:04:23.160 So the mission of our discussion today, I guess is 88 00:04:23.160 --> 00:04:26.639 to really get into that, to unpack how this single 89 00:04:26.680 --> 00:04:32.000 event managed to blend traditional Chinese culture with this incredibly 90 00:04:32.040 --> 00:04:37.279 cutting edge technology to signal loudly that technological self reliance 91 00:04:37.399 --> 00:04:39.120 isn't a future goal. It's here. 92 00:04:39.399 --> 00:04:42.079 It's happening right now on the world's biggest stage. 93 00:04:42.319 --> 00:04:44.040 Okay, so let's get into the weeds. Let's do a 94 00:04:44.079 --> 00:04:47.680 proper analysis of this, because the star of the show, 95 00:04:47.759 --> 00:04:50.759 the moment that I think just absolutely broke the internet, 96 00:04:51.040 --> 00:04:53.319 was the segment they called Wuviot. 97 00:04:53.639 --> 00:04:56.600 It's a clever name, Wou from Wu Shu or martial 98 00:04:56.680 --> 00:04:57.959 arts and bought. 99 00:04:58.360 --> 00:05:01.879 Simple, simple, effective, but the execution was anything but simple. 100 00:05:01.920 --> 00:05:05.079 This was the flagship segment, and it featured Unitary robotics. 101 00:05:05.160 --> 00:05:07.920 Specifically, they're G one humanoid robots. I mean, they had 102 00:05:07.959 --> 00:05:09.800 a few of the larger H one and H two 103 00:05:09.920 --> 00:05:12.839 variants sprinkled in there for some of the heavy lifting moments, 104 00:05:13.040 --> 00:05:15.600 but the g Ones were the main m the main 105 00:05:15.759 --> 00:05:17.240 chorus line, so to speak. 106 00:05:17.319 --> 00:05:19.319 And the G one is their mass production model, right 107 00:05:19.360 --> 00:05:20.879 the one they're trying to really scale up. 108 00:05:20.920 --> 00:05:23.279 That's the one. This was a showcase for the robot 109 00:05:23.319 --> 00:05:24.240 they intend to sell. 110 00:05:24.079 --> 00:05:26.879 By the thousands, and they weren't alone on stage. This 111 00:05:26.920 --> 00:05:28.800 is the part that gave me anxiety just watching it. 112 00:05:29.120 --> 00:05:32.920 They were performing alongside these incredibly talented kids from the 113 00:05:32.920 --> 00:05:35.439 Hennen Tago Martial Arts School, which. 114 00:05:35.279 --> 00:05:38.279 Just adds layer of complexity that makes me sweat just 115 00:05:38.360 --> 00:05:41.279 thinking about it. From an engineering and a safety perspective, 116 00:05:41.800 --> 00:05:48.199 you have high energy human performers children moving frankly, unpredictably 117 00:05:48.560 --> 00:05:51.480 right next to autonomous machines that are swinging weapons around. 118 00:05:51.879 --> 00:05:55.040 That is, that is a recipe for disaster if your 119 00:05:55.160 --> 00:05:57.160 code isn't absolutely perfect. 120 00:05:57.040 --> 00:05:59.519 And the energy I mean. The official description called it 121 00:05:59.560 --> 00:06:03.519 a fully autonomous humanoid robot cluster Kung Fu performance. Mmm. 122 00:06:04.240 --> 00:06:06.319 Just saying that sentence out loud feels like a mouthful 123 00:06:06.319 --> 00:06:07.319 from a science ficion novel. 124 00:06:07.360 --> 00:06:10.560 It is, but every single word in that sentence matters. 125 00:06:10.600 --> 00:06:14.160 Fully autonomous means no one was driving them with a joystick. 126 00:06:14.360 --> 00:06:17.360 There wasn't a team of people backstage with controllers for 127 00:06:17.399 --> 00:06:18.040 each robot. 128 00:06:18.120 --> 00:06:19.759 They were thinking for themselves in a way. 129 00:06:19.879 --> 00:06:23.199 Yes, they were executing their programming based on real time 130 00:06:23.279 --> 00:06:27.000 sensory input. Cluster means they were communicating with each other. 131 00:06:27.160 --> 00:06:31.000 They were aware of their group positioning, maintaining formation like a. 132 00:06:30.920 --> 00:06:33.519 Flock of birds, but with more spinning kicks exactly. 133 00:06:33.560 --> 00:06:37.160 And kung fu. Oh well, that's the incredible physical challenge 134 00:06:37.199 --> 00:06:38.279 that they set for themselves. 135 00:06:38.480 --> 00:06:41.240 Let's really dig into that physical challenge, because the one 136 00:06:41.279 --> 00:06:43.720 thing that made my jaw hit the floor was the 137 00:06:43.800 --> 00:06:46.079 drinke and fist zuquon. 138 00:06:45.879 --> 00:06:49.079 It is, I would argue, one of the most difficult 139 00:06:49.800 --> 00:06:53.279 martial arts styles for a human to master, let alone 140 00:06:53.319 --> 00:06:54.399 a robot, right. 141 00:06:54.319 --> 00:06:56.759 Because the entire point of drunken fists is that you 142 00:06:56.800 --> 00:06:59.240 look like you're about to fall over. You're stumbling, your 143 00:06:59.240 --> 00:07:02.279 off balance, lurching. It's all about deception. 144 00:07:02.120 --> 00:07:06.079 Exactly, and for a robot, balance is usually the number 145 00:07:06.120 --> 00:07:09.079 one goal. It's the prime directive. You want the center 146 00:07:09.120 --> 00:07:12.720 of gravity to be stable, you want predictable footing, you 147 00:07:12.759 --> 00:07:15.519 want your zero moment point, the point where all forces 148 00:07:15.560 --> 00:07:18.600 are balanced, to be right between your feet. Zuok one 149 00:07:18.680 --> 00:07:20.439 throws all of that out the window. 150 00:07:20.560 --> 00:07:22.399 So how do they even program that? Are they just 151 00:07:22.439 --> 00:07:24.040 telling it to almost fall? 152 00:07:24.199 --> 00:07:28.360 It's more complex than that. It requires programming these incredibly 153 00:07:28.399 --> 00:07:32.759 wobbly off balanced stances. It demands exaggerated swaying. It's like 154 00:07:32.800 --> 00:07:35.040 they have to constantly ride the very edge of their 155 00:07:35.040 --> 00:07:38.959 stability envelope without ever actually losing control. It's a continuous 156 00:07:39.040 --> 00:07:40.240 dynamic balancing act. 157 00:07:40.279 --> 00:07:42.399 And they were doing these sudden drops. I saw robots 158 00:07:42.480 --> 00:07:44.720 just hit the deck and then bounce right back up. 159 00:07:44.800 --> 00:07:47.160 That is the technical marvel right there. Yeah, it's not 160 00:07:47.279 --> 00:07:50.240 just the falling. Anyone can push a robot over. I 161 00:07:50.240 --> 00:07:54.319 could do that, right, It's the recovery. In robotics, we 162 00:07:54.360 --> 00:07:58.240 call this fault recovery algorithms. Usually, if a bipedal robot 163 00:07:58.279 --> 00:08:01.160 falls over, the show is over. It's a fail state. 164 00:08:01.560 --> 00:08:03.800 It needs a crane or a team of engineers in 165 00:08:03.839 --> 00:08:06.879 white coats to come out and reset it. It's embarrassing. 166 00:08:07.240 --> 00:08:10.399 But these things were popping back up like Arnold Schwarzenegger 167 00:08:10.480 --> 00:08:11.879 in a Terminator. 168 00:08:11.360 --> 00:08:14.319 Movie without any help. That is the key. They had 169 00:08:14.319 --> 00:08:17.879 to maintain this real time balance control in chaotic conditions, 170 00:08:18.480 --> 00:08:22.000 fall intentionally as part of the choreography, and then execute 171 00:08:22.040 --> 00:08:25.079 an explosive, powerful recovery to get back on their feet. 172 00:08:25.160 --> 00:08:27.800 So what does that show us technically what's going on 173 00:08:27.879 --> 00:08:28.680 under the hood there. 174 00:08:28.959 --> 00:08:32.559 It demonstrates a level of dynamic stability and proprioception that 175 00:08:32.720 --> 00:08:37.720 is honestly shocking. Proprioception is your body's awareness of itself 176 00:08:37.720 --> 00:08:40.919 in space. It implies the robot has an internal model 177 00:08:40.960 --> 00:08:44.000 of its own body that is incredibly advanced and that 178 00:08:44.080 --> 00:08:47.720 it can use to plan these complex, multi stage movements 179 00:08:47.919 --> 00:08:48.960 in milliseconds. 180 00:08:49.039 --> 00:08:51.039 It's almost like they have an inner ear like humans 181 00:08:51.080 --> 00:08:52.240 do for balance. 182 00:08:52.320 --> 00:08:55.720 In a way they do their imus. Their inertial measurement 183 00:08:55.799 --> 00:08:59.559 units are working overtime. These are the sensors, the gyroscopes 184 00:08:59.559 --> 00:09:03.440 and excelrometers that are processing thousands of data points every second. 185 00:09:03.600 --> 00:09:06.240 To say, okay, my torso is tilting backer at thirty 186 00:09:06.240 --> 00:09:09.039 degrees per second, I'm falling, So engage the knee actuators 187 00:09:09.039 --> 00:09:11.799 at x torque, swinging the left arm forward for a momentum, 188 00:09:11.879 --> 00:09:13.759 and push off the right heel to get back up. 189 00:09:14.120 --> 00:09:15.440 It's a symphony of calculations. 190 00:09:15.519 --> 00:09:18.559 And they weren't just dancing empty handed. They had weapons. This 191 00:09:18.600 --> 00:09:19.519 is another level. 192 00:09:19.279 --> 00:09:24.279 Of crazy broadswords. Yeah, the dies staffs, the gun and nunchucks. 193 00:09:24.480 --> 00:09:27.000 Nunchucks. I can barely use nunchucks without hitting myself on 194 00:09:27.039 --> 00:09:29.159 the face. Seeing robots spin them around with the kids 195 00:09:29.200 --> 00:09:30.200 standing three feet away. 196 00:09:30.440 --> 00:09:34.159 It adds this whole variable of inertia and momentum that 197 00:09:34.200 --> 00:09:37.559 the robot has to calculate in real time. It's not 198 00:09:37.639 --> 00:09:40.559 just its own body anymore. If you swing a heavy staff, 199 00:09:40.799 --> 00:09:43.679 it pulls your body forward. Centrifugal force is. 200 00:09:43.840 --> 00:09:47.080 Very real, so the robot has to actively fight that 201 00:09:47.159 --> 00:09:48.080 force instantly. 202 00:09:48.720 --> 00:09:51.440 It has to compensate for that pull in the exact 203 00:09:51.440 --> 00:09:55.799 opposite direction, or just falls over. It's a constant feedback loop, swinging, 204 00:09:56.159 --> 00:10:00.240 feel the pole, adjust stance, compensate, all while stay in 205 00:10:00.320 --> 00:10:03.399 sync with the music and dozens of other performers. 206 00:10:03.519 --> 00:10:05.840 It really highlights the relevance of this whole segment. Then 207 00:10:05.879 --> 00:10:08.200 it's not just look a robot can dance. It's look 208 00:10:08.399 --> 00:10:11.799 a robot that can handle chaotic, unpredictable physical forces. 209 00:10:11.960 --> 00:10:15.600 Precisely, it's a demonstration of robustness because if it can 210 00:10:15.639 --> 00:10:18.320 handle a nunchuck swing while standing on one leg on 211 00:10:18.320 --> 00:10:21.120 a slippery stage, it can probably handle carrying a heavy 212 00:10:21.159 --> 00:10:24.600 box of groceries over an icy driveway. That's the translation 213 00:10:24.679 --> 00:10:25.399 to the real world. 214 00:10:25.519 --> 00:10:27.320 That makes sense. But then we have to talk about 215 00:10:27.320 --> 00:10:29.759 the acrobatics because they didn't just stand the ground. 216 00:10:29.840 --> 00:10:31.159 No, No, they were airborne. 217 00:10:31.240 --> 00:10:35.360 I saw freestyle table vaulting parkour. A robot just running 218 00:10:35.399 --> 00:10:37.840 at a table, planting its hands and vaulting over it. 219 00:10:37.879 --> 00:10:41.720 And the aerial flips they looked well, they looked impossible 220 00:10:41.720 --> 00:10:44.679 for a machine made of metal, plastic and wires. 221 00:10:44.919 --> 00:10:45.960 How hygrid they getting. 222 00:10:46.080 --> 00:10:49.759 Some of them are doing three meter high aerial flips. Now, 223 00:10:50.440 --> 00:10:52.559 just stop and think about the structural stress on a 224 00:10:52.600 --> 00:10:55.240 machine when it lands from three meters in the air. 225 00:10:55.600 --> 00:10:56.879 That's almost ten feet. 226 00:10:57.120 --> 00:11:00.080 That has to exceed standard structural limits, doesn't it. I 227 00:11:00.080 --> 00:11:02.440 mean my phone screen cracks if I drop at three 228 00:11:02.440 --> 00:11:03.519 feet Usually. 229 00:11:03.360 --> 00:11:06.559 Yes, for most robots, a fall from that height you 230 00:11:06.559 --> 00:11:10.279 would risk snapping the joints, shattering the optical sensors, or 231 00:11:10.360 --> 00:11:13.120 stripping the gears and the harmonic drives that control the limbs. 232 00:11:13.519 --> 00:11:17.440 But these units, they took the impact, they absorbed the shock, 233 00:11:17.679 --> 00:11:18.519 and they kept moving. 234 00:11:18.799 --> 00:11:23.879 I saw continuous single legg flips and two step wall assisted. 235 00:11:23.440 --> 00:11:25.879 Backflips, the kind of stuff you see in an action movie. 236 00:11:25.960 --> 00:11:28.440 Yeah. And the speed they weren't moving in that slow, 237 00:11:28.639 --> 00:11:31.279 deliberate I'm thinking about my next step motion like those 238 00:11:31.279 --> 00:11:33.000 old robot videos we used to laugh at. 239 00:11:33.279 --> 00:11:36.720 No, this was fluid and fast. They were clocking running 240 00:11:36.720 --> 00:11:39.559 speeds up to four meters per second, which is about 241 00:11:39.960 --> 00:11:43.600 about fourteen kilometers per hour or around nine miles per hour. 242 00:11:43.960 --> 00:11:45.960 That is a respectable human sprint. 243 00:11:46.120 --> 00:11:49.240 And then there was that break dancing move, the airflare. 244 00:11:49.360 --> 00:11:52.480 Was it the seven point five rotation airflare Grand skin. 245 00:11:53.080 --> 00:11:55.440 I don't even know what that means technically, but visually 246 00:11:55.480 --> 00:11:57.759 it was just a blur of a robot spinning on 247 00:11:57.799 --> 00:11:58.200 its hands. 248 00:11:58.200 --> 00:12:01.279 It's an incredibly difficult power move and break dancing. The 249 00:12:01.279 --> 00:12:04.519 body spins horizontally, almost parallel to the floor while you 250 00:12:04.559 --> 00:12:06.840 balance on your hands, switching from one hand to the 251 00:12:06.919 --> 00:12:09.120 other rapidly teeth the momentum. 252 00:12:09.519 --> 00:12:13.600 So to do seven and a half rotations continuously. 253 00:12:13.000 --> 00:12:16.240 It requires a battery output and a joint torque density 254 00:12:16.240 --> 00:12:19.279 that is absolutely cutting edge. It's a massive stress test 255 00:12:19.320 --> 00:12:22.120 for the battery management system and the cooling systems as 256 00:12:22.200 --> 00:12:24.320 much as it is for the motors. That move has 257 00:12:24.360 --> 00:12:28.320 never been achieved live by a humanoid cluster before ever. 258 00:12:28.639 --> 00:12:30.399 And cluster is the word that brings us to the 259 00:12:30.440 --> 00:12:33.080 next big point here. It wasn't just one super robot 260 00:12:33.120 --> 00:12:35.600 showing off in the spotlight. It was dozens of them. 261 00:12:35.720 --> 00:12:37.919 This is where we get into the realm of swarm intelligence. 262 00:12:38.440 --> 00:12:41.600 And this to me is almost more impressive than a 263 00:12:41.639 --> 00:12:44.120 single robot's acrobatics. 264 00:12:43.559 --> 00:12:46.200 Right, Because if you have one robot doing a backflip, 265 00:12:46.240 --> 00:12:49.559 that's incredible engineering. But if you have twenty robots doing 266 00:12:49.600 --> 00:12:52.320 backflips next to each other without crashing into each other, 267 00:12:52.840 --> 00:12:54.080 that's a whole different problem. 268 00:12:54.120 --> 00:12:57.159 It's a logistics and a communication problem. They were moving 269 00:12:57.159 --> 00:13:00.320 in these perfectly synchronized formations, and we have to remit umber. 270 00:13:00.399 --> 00:13:03.879 They aren't on rails, they aren't following magnets in the floor. 271 00:13:03.960 --> 00:13:07.519 They're using closed loop AI perception. What does that mean? 272 00:13:07.679 --> 00:13:11.080 In simple terms, it means they are constantly seeing the 273 00:13:11.120 --> 00:13:13.720 world around them and reacting to it. The loop is 274 00:13:14.159 --> 00:13:18.919 see think, act, repeat over and over hundreds of times. 275 00:13:18.639 --> 00:13:20.879 A second, so they are literally seeing each other. 276 00:13:21.039 --> 00:13:24.559 Yes, they're equipped with a sensor suite, primarily using triangular 277 00:13:24.639 --> 00:13:27.759 light ar and vision systems cameras to map the stage, 278 00:13:27.879 --> 00:13:30.600 to map the position of their neighbors, and most importantly, 279 00:13:30.720 --> 00:13:32.919 to map the human performers in real time. 280 00:13:33.000 --> 00:13:35.840 Which brings me back to the safety question, because again, 281 00:13:35.960 --> 00:13:38.840 we have robots swinging sticks and nunchucks and they are 282 00:13:39.000 --> 00:13:41.039 at times inches away from children. 283 00:13:41.240 --> 00:13:44.440 It's a terrifying prospect for a safety officer. But it's 284 00:13:44.480 --> 00:13:47.720 a massive flex for the engineers who program them. They 285 00:13:47.759 --> 00:13:51.200 use a technique called reinforcement learning to achieve over ninety 286 00:13:51.200 --> 00:13:52.559 percent motion accuracy. 287 00:13:52.679 --> 00:13:55.240 Reinforcement learning. We hear that term a lot with AI, 288 00:13:55.399 --> 00:13:58.879 like chat rept but how does it apply to physical 289 00:13:58.960 --> 00:14:00.320 legs and arms. 290 00:14:00.559 --> 00:14:02.960 Well, think of it like training a dog, but digitally 291 00:14:03.159 --> 00:14:06.120 and millions of times faster. You give the AI a 292 00:14:06.159 --> 00:14:08.960 goal in a computer simulation. Do this kung fu move, 293 00:14:09.279 --> 00:14:11.080 but don't let the end of your staff get within 294 00:14:11.159 --> 00:14:14.399 twelve inches of this moving child shaped object, and you 295 00:14:14.480 --> 00:14:16.840 reward it when it gets it right and penalize it 296 00:14:16.879 --> 00:14:17.519 when it fails. 297 00:14:17.840 --> 00:14:20.639 So it practice is in a video game, essentially a very. 298 00:14:20.600 --> 00:14:24.360 Very realistic video game. They ran these simulations millions, maybe 299 00:14:24.360 --> 00:14:27.200 billions of times. We call this process sim too real 300 00:14:27.200 --> 00:14:30.080 simulation to reality. They let the AI figure out the 301 00:14:30.120 --> 00:14:33.200 optimal movements on its own through trial and error, so. 302 00:14:33.120 --> 00:14:35.519 By the time they got to the Gallas stage, the 303 00:14:35.639 --> 00:14:39.320 robots had effectively practiced this routine more times than any 304 00:14:39.399 --> 00:14:40.799 human being ever could. 305 00:14:40.679 --> 00:14:44.600 Exactly, and the system is dynamic. It allows for real 306 00:14:44.679 --> 00:14:48.000 time spacing adjustments. If a human performer is a few 307 00:14:48.039 --> 00:14:50.600 inches off their mark, which they will be because they're human. 308 00:14:50.720 --> 00:14:55.000 Of course, the robust perception system detects it and instantly 309 00:14:55.039 --> 00:14:58.120 adjusts its swing or its step to avoid a collision. 310 00:14:58.480 --> 00:15:03.559 Its dynamic safety, pre program safety. It's adapting on the fly. 311 00:15:03.840 --> 00:15:07.000 That is just incredible. And they even had sparring sequences, right, 312 00:15:07.000 --> 00:15:10.159 It wasn't just dancing side by side. They were actually fighting. 313 00:15:10.200 --> 00:15:14.120 They called it the Louis Fists sequences. Yes, robots dueling 314 00:15:14.159 --> 00:15:16.879 with the young performers. It was choreygraphed, of course, but 315 00:15:16.919 --> 00:15:20.120 it required that same real time perception to work. 316 00:15:20.360 --> 00:15:24.600 It was a showcase of harmony, I guess, between man 317 00:15:24.639 --> 00:15:27.279 and machine in a very confined, very active space. 318 00:15:27.519 --> 00:15:29.840 That's the thematic takeaway they were going for. It sends 319 00:15:29.840 --> 00:15:32.600 a pretty strong message. We are safe, we are precise, 320 00:15:32.679 --> 00:15:34.120 we can work with you, not against you. 321 00:15:34.399 --> 00:15:37.559 It's an attempt to erase that classic sci fi fear 322 00:15:37.679 --> 00:15:41.080 that robots are dangerous, clumsy machines that are going to 323 00:15:41.159 --> 00:15:42.039 trip and crush you. 324 00:15:42.279 --> 00:15:45.879 Exactly. It's a very powerful image. But speaking of powerful images, 325 00:15:46.519 --> 00:15:48.440 we absolutely have to talk about the Monkey King. 326 00:15:48.559 --> 00:15:51.200 Oh man, the monkey King. 327 00:15:51.320 --> 00:15:53.759 This is where the cultural fusion peaked. It was just 328 00:15:53.799 --> 00:15:56.679 a masterstroke of stagecraft and symbolism. 329 00:15:56.960 --> 00:15:59.480 For those who might not know, the Monkey King's Sun 330 00:15:59.559 --> 00:16:03.600 Wukong is like the ultimate superhero of Chinese mythology from 331 00:16:03.639 --> 00:16:05.480 the classic novel Journey to the West. 332 00:16:05.559 --> 00:16:10.960 He represents agility, cleverness, rebellion, and incredible power, and typically 333 00:16:10.960 --> 00:16:12.519 in the year of the Horse. You might not expect 334 00:16:12.519 --> 00:16:15.159 the Monkey King to take center stage, but he is 335 00:16:15.200 --> 00:16:17.440 such an icon of movement and transformation. 336 00:16:17.639 --> 00:16:20.600 And they dressed up a Unitree H two model. This 337 00:16:20.639 --> 00:16:22.720 is the big one, the one point eight meter tall, 338 00:16:22.799 --> 00:16:26.360 heavily armored looking robot in full Monkey King armor. 339 00:16:26.440 --> 00:16:29.840 It was visually so striking, the ornate armor, the powerful stance. 340 00:16:30.240 --> 00:16:32.399 But the genius part, the part that made everyone gassed, 341 00:16:32.720 --> 00:16:33.759 was the cloud. 342 00:16:33.440 --> 00:16:36.240 The Somersault cloud. In the myths, the Monkey King can 343 00:16:36.240 --> 00:16:38.799 fly by riding on a magical cloud. So how did 344 00:16:38.799 --> 00:16:40.080 they pull that off with a robot. 345 00:16:40.320 --> 00:16:43.960 They used unit Trees B to W quadruped robot dogs, 346 00:16:44.399 --> 00:16:45.320 the four legged. 347 00:16:45.080 --> 00:16:49.120 Ones the robot dogs. Of course, Boston Dynamics made them famous, 348 00:16:49.120 --> 00:16:50.399 but Unitrey makes them. 349 00:16:50.240 --> 00:16:53.120 Too, and they are very very good at it. They 350 00:16:53.159 --> 00:16:55.480 basically covered a small pack of these B to W 351 00:16:55.639 --> 00:16:58.840 dogs in cloud like props and the humanoid Monkey King 352 00:16:58.919 --> 00:17:01.440 robot stood on top of them as they trotted around 353 00:17:01.440 --> 00:17:04.920 the stage. It was a robot writing other robots. 354 00:17:04.599 --> 00:17:07.000 Delivering New Year blessings from the sky. 355 00:17:07.359 --> 00:17:09.880 It was incredible and it appeared at both the main 356 00:17:09.960 --> 00:17:12.799 Beijing venue and the u Wu venue. It frames the 357 00:17:12.920 --> 00:17:16.039 robot not as some foreign alien invader, but as a 358 00:17:16.359 --> 00:17:17.319 cultural preserver. 359 00:17:17.720 --> 00:17:20.480 That's a fascinating phrase, cultural preserver. I hadn't thought of 360 00:17:20.519 --> 00:17:21.000 it like that. 361 00:17:21.079 --> 00:17:24.119 It's one hundred percent intentional. By having the robot learn 362 00:17:24.200 --> 00:17:27.200 kung fu, learn the traditions of the Shallon Temple, embody 363 00:17:27.240 --> 00:17:30.079 the Monkey King, the message is that this new technology 364 00:17:30.079 --> 00:17:32.640 isn't here to replace our culture, It's here to learn 365 00:17:32.640 --> 00:17:34.559 from it, to carry it forward in a new form. 366 00:17:35.039 --> 00:17:38.319 It frames the AI as a student of human history, 367 00:17:38.599 --> 00:17:39.599 not its replacement. 368 00:17:39.880 --> 00:17:42.279 I love that it's such a smart way to position 369 00:17:42.359 --> 00:17:45.519 it now. Unitree was clearly the star, but they weren't 370 00:17:45.559 --> 00:17:47.640 the only ones at the party. We mentioned a few 371 00:17:47.640 --> 00:17:51.440 other companies at the top. Let's talk about Noahtics Robotics, right. 372 00:17:51.559 --> 00:17:55.279 Noadics took a very very different approach. While Unitary was 373 00:17:55.319 --> 00:17:58.640 out there doing backflips and swinging swords, no It's went 374 00:17:58.680 --> 00:18:00.759 for the heart strings. They went for the social angle. 375 00:18:00.799 --> 00:18:04.279 They were in that comedy sketch, the one called Grandma's Favorite. 376 00:18:03.960 --> 00:18:08.160 Which is a classic Spring Festival Gala trope, the family 377 00:18:08.200 --> 00:18:10.680 comedy sketch. You know, there's always a misunderstanding a big 378 00:18:10.720 --> 00:18:14.160 family dinner. It's very relatable. And Noahdicgs brought out their 379 00:18:14.200 --> 00:18:17.720 Boomy and two and e one models, along with some 380 00:18:18.039 --> 00:18:19.680 custom biotic models. 381 00:18:19.359 --> 00:18:21.920 And these weren't fighting robots, they were acting. They were 382 00:18:21.960 --> 00:18:23.119 part of the family exactly. 383 00:18:23.160 --> 00:18:27.359 The focus here was entirely on social presence, on gesture recognition, 384 00:18:27.920 --> 00:18:29.759 on humorous timing, which. 385 00:18:29.519 --> 00:18:32.440 Is really really hard. Comedy is all about timing. If 386 00:18:32.440 --> 00:18:35.160 the robot pauses for a second too long or delivers 387 00:18:35.200 --> 00:18:38.039 a line too quickly, the entire joke just dies. 388 00:18:38.720 --> 00:18:41.480 And they pulled it off. It shows a completely different 389 00:18:41.559 --> 00:18:45.559 kind of intelligence. It's not just physical agility, it's social agility. 390 00:18:46.039 --> 00:18:50.119 They were interacting naturally with human actors in these everyday 391 00:18:50.119 --> 00:18:54.039 home scenarios. It paints a picture of a future where 392 00:18:54.200 --> 00:18:57.759 robots are helpers in the home, companions for the elderly, 393 00:18:58.000 --> 00:18:59.920 not just soldiers or factory workers. 394 00:19:00.039 --> 00:19:01.559 A much more gentle vision of. 395 00:19:01.519 --> 00:19:03.359 The future, much more approachable one. 396 00:19:03.519 --> 00:19:04.759 And then we had Magic Lab. 397 00:19:04.880 --> 00:19:07.799 Magic Lab brought the groove. They were all about dance 398 00:19:07.799 --> 00:19:10.559 and precision. They had their Magic bought Gen one and 399 00:19:10.680 --> 00:19:11.680 Z one models on something. 400 00:19:11.680 --> 00:19:14.480 So you're in that big musical number right the song 401 00:19:14.519 --> 00:19:15.519