The 2nd World Humanoid Robot Games, which opened at Beijing's National Speed Skating Oval, also known as the Ice Ribbon, are serving as a real-world validation of the 5G Capital initiative in robotics and embodied AI. China Unicom Beijing and Huawei have deployed a 5G-A GigaUplink network to support intelligent event operations, robot competition, and spectator experiences. This deployment not only facilitates the games but also lays a connectivity foundation for humanoid robots to move beyond the arena into everyday life.
This year's games feature significant upgrades in scale and competition design. With 2,056 humanoid robots from 666 teams worldwide participating in 1,301 competitions across 51 events, the number of events has nearly doubled from 26 in the inaugural games. New high-intensity head-to-head events such as table tennis and kickboxing have been introduced, and scenario-based competitions now extend to industrial production, hotels, homes, and logistics. The increased autonomy and task complexity demand networks with high-capacity uplink, millisecond-level responsiveness, and high reliability to support real-time telemetry, precise control signaling, and multi-robot coordination.
To meet these stringent requirements, China Unicom Beijing and Huawei deployed a dedicated 100 MHz network, complemented by a 300 MHz LampSite ultra-wideband indoor network. This setup supports real-time robot telemetry and precise signaling exchange. A dedicated 5QI 7 slice combined with carrier isolation keeps end-to-end latency within 30 milliseconds, enabling millisecond-level decision-making and response, which is critical for multi-robot coordination, obstacle avoidance, and fine-motion control. By integrating the network with BeiDou RTK positioning, the solution delivers decimeter- to sub-decimeter-level accuracy for autonomous navigation and precision racing. On-site tests recorded a peak uplink speed of 1 Gbps and average latency below 30 milliseconds.
While prioritizing mission-critical connectivity for the robots, China Unicom has also enhanced the spectator experience. Network resources and service assurance policies are dynamically adjusted based on event phases and areas, such as admission, waiting, competition, and departure. Core services like instant messaging, ticket inquiries, QR-code admission, and mobile payments receive stable access, while data-intensive services like photo uploads, short-video sharing, and live streaming are also accommodated. This ensures seamless connectivity and real-time interaction even during peak traffic periods.
On the operations side, China Unicom has developed China's first embodied AI robot management platform designed for event scenarios. Through a unique network ID assigned to each robot, event staff can monitor location, competition status, and operational metrics in real time, creating a closed-loop management system.
Yang Lifan, Deputy General Manager of China Unicom Beijing, stated, "This network deployment is not only a real-world test of China Unicom's network capabilities; it will also help us accumulate valuable network assurance experience for the large-scale deployment of embodied AI." David Li, President of Huawei's Wireless TDD Product Line, added, "The 2nd World Humanoid Robot Games have provided a compelling real-world validation of the 5G-A 100 MHz GigaUplink network based on 3.5 GHz 2CC + 2.1 GHz SUL for embodied AI scenarios. Looking ahead, Huawei will continue to work with China Unicom Beijing to strengthen uplink capabilities and advance spectrum coordination, building multidimensional network capabilities with tiered and differentiated service assurance for multimodal device-to-cloud transmission."
This deployment underscores that networks are about more than speed. Low latency, high reliability, and ubiquitous coverage are equally important. By advancing the 5G Capital initiative, China Unicom and Huawei are expanding the boundaries of network performance and laying a solid foundation for the Mobile AI era, working with industry partners to enable an intelligent future.
