Considering how the robots are treated in the demo videos, they can hardly be blamed for wanting to overthrow humanity.
In this terrifying video, a humanoid robot is seen taking a beating from a human operator before breaking its fingers with a sledgehammer.
To make things even stranger, the robot also shows off its strangely flexible joints by contorting like something out of The Exorcist.
While they may be impressive, these creepy moves have led some commentators on social media to call the robot “absolutely terrifying.”
But at just 4 feet 1 inch (127 cm), about the average height of an eight-year-old, the Unitree G1 might struggle to reach the top shelf, let alone destroy humanity.
In this terrifying video, a humanoid robot is seen taking a beating from a human operator before breaking its fingers with a sledgehammer.
In a creepy clip, the child-sized robot can be seen breaking its hand with a sledgehammer.
At the beginning of the video, the child-sized humanoid appears crumpled on the ground, before standing up on its flexible joints.
This flexibility seems to be something Unitree wants to emphasize, as the video also shows the robot packing himself into an android contortionist.
Weighing just 35 kg (77 lb), this makes the G1 portable, as a Unitree employee demonstrates by lifting the folded robot.
However, it’s very likely that these specific contortions are designed to mimic a recent video in which Boston Dynamics showed off the flexibility of its Atlas humanoid robot.
In another move seemingly inspired by Boston Dynamics’ one-off presentations, the Unitree team also subjects their robot to a series of kicks and punches to the chest.
Despite repeated attacks, the G1 manages to withstand the impacts and remain standing while only stumbling backwards to regain his balance.
But some social media commentators are unimpressed by the robot’s impressive tests, calling the robot’s strange movements “creepy.”
“We are officially entering the era of contortionist robots,” wrote one YouTube commenter.
The robot also shows off its flexible joints that can twist and turn, giving it an impressive ability to move like a contortionist.
Another joked that Unitree was “trying to beat Boston Dynamics at the scariest get-up-off-the-floor routine.”
Several commenters also pointed out the slightly disconcerting disclaimer at the end of the video that reads: “Users are asked to maintain a sufficient safety distance between the humanoid robot and the humanoid robot.”
One commenter joked: ‘We can’t let them plot against us, can we?’
Some commenters even seemed genuinely worried that the robot might start to resent all the abuse.
One commenter wrote: “Bro, why do they always need to kick or punch the robot? They’ll take it personally once the singularity comes.”
“I have a feeling all these introductory Android videos with the gratuitous kicking and punching part will come back to haunt us one day,” wrote another.
Meanwhile, one commenter simply added: “Don’t kick him hard, he has feelings.”
In another strange detail, the video also shows G1 breaking his hands with a sledgehammer.
On social media, one commenter joked that this was the robot’s “debt collector mode.”
The robot is capable of compacting into a compact ball and, at just 35kg, can be lifted and carried by a human.
The G1 demonstrates its impressive prowess by performing tasks such as cooking and soldering
However, this seemingly unusual test may actually demonstrate an important capability.
Recently, it was revealed that Shadow Robot Company, a British company, had developed a super-durable robotic hand to help develop Google DeepMind’s AI robotics.
Likewise, Shadow Robot Company’s test videos showed its robotic hand being hit with hammers and hit with pistons.
This robustness is necessary because AIs are often very abrupt when learning to operate robots, leading to frequent breakages.
Unitree notes that the G1’s controls are “driven by imitation and reinforcement learning,” suggesting that a more resilient build could be designed to survive the AI learning process.
It doesn’t appear that Unitree sacrificed dexterity for toughness, however, as the video also shows the G1 using its three-fingered claw to perform a number of tasks.
It is still not entirely clear what the intended use of this robot is. Although it has a number of impressive features, it is also too small to replace humans in factory work.
The G1 demonstrates some martial arts style moves with a stick, decapitates a cola bottle, cracks a nut, and even shows off some welding.
However, some commentators were concerned about the surprising amount of force the little robot was capable of generating.
One commenter asked: “Am I the only one worried about the fact that this robot can crush nuts with its bare hands?”
Another concerned commenter added: “Did anyone else imagine a human skull, crushed under the robot’s fist, instead of the nut?”
This is also not the first time that one of Unitree’s robotic creations has raised alarm.
The company was known for its four-legged robots, one of which was recently used as the basis for a terrifying flamethrowing robot.
With its extreme toughness, this latest humanoid robot might be reminiscent of some of the creepy killer robots from The Terminator (pictured).
However, it has recently branched out and this is now the second humanoid robot launched by Unitree.
Earlier this year, Unitree’s H1 robot set a new speed record for humanoid machines by reaching an impressive 11 kmph (7 mph).
The new G1 is no snail either, reaching top speeds of a respectable 7.2 km/h (4.5 mph).
While $16,000 (£12,600) isn’t cheap, it’s a bargain compared to the H1’s starting price of $90,000 (£71,000).
For comparison, Elon Musk has said he wants Tesla’s humanoid robot, Optimus, to cost around $20,000 (£15,600), although the model has not yet gone into production.
