National pride at stake as giant robots prepare for combat

[RandySF]

(CNN)America's first giant combat robot needs your help.

In late June, the U.S.-based robotics company MegaBots challenged Suidobashi Heavy Industry, a Japanese company, to pit their robots in battle against each other.

Suidobashi responded with the one-upsmanship fitting such a surreal challenge: Let's fight hand to hand.

Now the U.S. team has launched a Kickstarter campaign to upgrade their current robot, so that it can evolve from firing paintballs (as it does now) to throwing punches.

A video posted to Kickstarter on Tuesday explains the updated version of MegaBots' Mk.II has to upgrade its propulsion system so it can move faster, needs better armor to fend off opposing attacks and, of course, could use a Hollywood-esque paint job worthy of such an audacious project.

The team announced partnerships with Grant Imahara (best known from his time on the Discovery show "Mythbusters&quot , the creators of Battlebots, the CEO of Autodesk, heads of robotics and defense companies and an expert from NASA who worked on robotics systems currently on Mars.


http://www.cnn.com/2015/08/18/tech/giant-robot-duel/?iid=ob_homepage_tech_pool&iref=obnetwork

[Suich]

1. I can't believe how much they've raised!

$457K+ in 16 days, with 10 people giving $10K each!

[freshwest]

2. Sorry, but I got a feeling Megabot is gonna have his tin ass handed to him.

The Japanese are REALLY into robotics. For everything you could possibly imagine, and things some may not wanna know about...

[Recursion]

5. The Japanese robot was also designed from day one for melee combat

While for Megabot this is a retrofitting.

[MrScorpio]

3. Perhaps this will move the direction of fighting future wars.

Giant robots instead of people.

If so, I'm sure that some war-mongering politician would fuck it up for the rest of us.

[lumberjack_jeff]

4. The American robot will have a better paint job, insurance and marketing. n/t