--- title: "Google Shows Off Robot That It Says Plays Ping Pong as Well as a Human" description: "Google's DeepMind has shown off an AI-powered robot that can beat the average Joe player at a game of table tennis." date: "2024-08-11" modified: "2024-08-11" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/google-robot-table-tennis" categories: - "Artificial Intelligence" - "Google" - "Robotics" - "Robots and Machines" tags: - "DeepMind" - "Google" - "robots" - "sports" --- # Google Shows Off Robot That It Says Plays Ping Pong as Well as a Human ![Google's DeepMind has shown off an AI-powered robot that can beat the average Joe player at a game of table tennis.]() *\Image: Google\* ## Back in the Paddle Google's DeepMind has shown off an AI-powered robot that can beat the average player at a game of table tennis. According to an [announcement]() by the company on X-formerly-Twitter, "it’s the first agent to achieve amateur human level performance in this sport." A video shows the robot wielding an extended table tennis paddle, confidently aiming the ball to throw off its human opponent. But when it'll be able to take on the likes of China's national team, which recently won gold at the ongoing Olympics in Paris, remains to be seen. While Google's engineers can seemingly keep up with the robot, a professional in the sport will be far harder to beat. https://twitter.com/GoogleDeepMind/status/1821562365931855970 ## Amateur Hour Since table tennis "requires years of training for humans to master," the sport is a "valuable benchmark for advancing robotic capabilities, including high-speed motion, real-time precise and strategic decision making, system design and enabling direct competition with a human opponent," according to DeepMind's [official documentation](). Robots have already taken on a number of different human sports, like one developed by students at the University of Electronic Science and Technology of China that can [challenge players in badminton](). DeepMind's invention isn't even the only robot that can play table tennis, either. A company called OMRON Robotics [released the seventh generation]() of its table tennis robot, dubbed FORPHEUS β€” which the company claims can teach humans how to play the game β€” back in 2022. Scientists at DeepMind used AI algorithms to "adapt to various opponents by tracking their behaviors and playing style β€” such as which side of the table they tend to return the ball to." Based on 29 matches with human opponents of different skill levels, the robot performed as well as what DeepMind is calling an "[intermediate amateur]()." But when it comes to a more advanced player, the company admitted that the robot has plenty of limitations, [including]() "reaction speed, camera sensing capabilities, spin handling, and the paddle rubber." "Whilst the robot lost all matches vs. the most advanced players it won 100 percent matches vs. beginners and 55 percent matches vs. intermediate players," DeepMind noted in its documentation. For a casual bout of table tennis among friends, that's a reasonable success rate. But DeepMind has some ways to go until its robot can take on the pros. **More on robots:** *[After Just Ten Months, Amazon Says Its "Security Guard" Robot Will Become a Useless Brick]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()