China’s New Humanoid Robot Pulls Off a Side Flip — It’s Unlike Anything We’ve Seen (VIDEO)

In a jaw-dropping leap forward for robotics, Chinese tech firm Unitree has released footage of its latest humanoid creation, the G1, pulling off a standing side flip – the first ever recorded by a humanoid robot.

The 19-second clip shows the robot executing the acrobatic move with remarkable control and balance. This follows last year’s viral moment when Unitree’s H1 stunned viewers by landing a clean backflip. But the side flip is even more technically challenging, pushing the boundaries of what’s physically possible for bipedal machines.

Built to Move – 23 Joints, Top-Tier Sensors and a Speedy Brain

The G1 is no gimmick. It’s a serious feat of engineering. With 23 degrees of freedom (DoF), the robot stands 1.32 metres tall and weighs just 35 kilograms. Its limbs and torso are powered by high-performance actuators controlled by an 8-core CPU, allowing it to walk at speeds of up to 4.5 mph (7.2 km/h).

Its compact body folds down to just 27 x 17.7 x 11.8 inches for easy transport, while a 9,000-mAh battery keeps it running for up to two hours. And that’s not all; it also features 3D LiDAR, a RealSense depth camera, and a microphone array capable of understanding voice commands, making it agile and interactive.

More Than Just Flips – Watch G1 Disarm a Human with a Spinning Kick

Earlier this month, Unitree showed the G1 pulling off another impressive move; a 720-degree spinning kick that disarmed a baton-wielding human stand-in. The move, part performance and part proof of concept, shows how far the G1’s motion-planning algorithms have come.

These stunts are the result of months of iterative updates to G1’s software, allowing it to learn complex behaviours and react with real-world precision.

Trained in the Matrix – Virtual Learning Meets Real-World Agility

Before taking its first real-world step, the G1 trains inside Nvidia’s Isaac Simulator, a digital environment that teaches it how to perform increasingly complex actions. Through reinforcement learning and a process called Sim2Real, these virtual skills are flawlessly transferred into the physical robot. This makes its dramatic flips and kicks possible without trial-and-error damage.

Unitree has made it clear, however: the G1 is not to be repurposed for combat or aggressive tasks. Strict guidelines caution against unauthorised modifications.

Unitree Goes Open Source – Sharing the Future of Human-Like Robotics

In a major move for the robotics community, Unitree has released an open-source, full-body motion dataset designed to improve humanoid motor control and movement realism. Built using LAFAN1 motion capture and powered by a new redirection algorithm, the dataset enhances movement fluidity across Unitree’s humanoid lineup, including the G1 and record-holding H1.

This tool helps refine everything from dance moves to dynamic rebalancing, using interactive mesh processing and posture-based motion planning. It’s a gift to developers and researchers, inviting collaboration on the next generation of lifelike robotic motion.

One Giant Flip for Robotkind

With the G1, Unitree is pushing the limits of what humanoid robots can do. From clean side flips to tactical kicks, advanced balance to open-source collaboration, this compact machine is redefining the possibilities of agile robotics.