It seems that the plot of the Hollywood movie Real Steel may come true in the very near future. California startup MegaBots Inc. received funding of $ 2.4 million to create the world's first sports league of manned combat robots. What? Sports organizations like the FIA or the UFC make millions of dollars in profits every year, so why not show the audience what they have dreamed of for so long, namely, combat robot fights?
You may remember how in the summer of 2015 the creators of the MegaBot Mk. II combat robot challenged the Japanese company Suidobashi Heavy Industry and their Kuratas robot. The Japanese agreed to take part in the first hand-to-hand combat between two manned robots in the history of mankind, although the place and date of this amazing duel are still unknown to us. It seems that MegaBots Inc. wants to make a truly spectacular show out of this event. Previously, the management of the startup has already attracted about half a million investments to finalize its combat robot, and now they have additional funds to register a sports league in this unusual sport.
To fulfill their ambitious plans, the employees of MegaBots Inc. enlisted the support of Christopher Brerton of the International Olympic Committee. This person organizes sports leagues for organizations such as the NBA, MLB, NFL and others. While it is quite difficult to imagine how the duels of giant fighting robots will look like, but it may very well be that this kind of entertainment will turn into the sport of the future. Just imagine: a Japanese robot weighing more than 4 tons and an American robot, which in full combat rigging, will weigh about 7 tons, will converge in the ring. An early version of the MegaBot Mk. II was able to shoot paintballs with paint, with which it blinded the optical systems of the enemy robot.
At the moment, MegaBots Inc. negotiates with the governments of several countries, trying to find the ideal location for the duel, as well as a whole series of future fights. One of the difficulties faced by the organizers is the transportation of such a heavy load as a combat robot over long distances and its transportation across state borders. It is planned to recoup the funds spent by selling souvenirs (the company has already earned more than $ 1 million on souvenirs), as well as by attracting sponsorship.
SERGEY GRAY