These space robots will be powered by conventional lithium batteries.
DOLGOPRUDNY /Moscow region/, November 23. /tass/. Scientists from MIPT and the Space Research Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences are actively discussing the possibility of sending into space an anthropomorphic robot "SERVANT" developed at MIPT, which has an unusually quiet and natural gait, during tests of a new generation manned transport vehicle (PTK NP). This was announced to TASS by MIPT Professor Azer Babayev at the presentation of the robot at the Kapitsa Phystech Lyceum Technopark.
"We have already had contacts of this kind with the Space Research Institute. It was said that in preparation for future Russian lunar missions, a prototype of a manned spacecraft would be launched. The first such launches will take place without a human, and we had the idea that instead of a pilot, we could put our robot in a similar ship. It is not yet known what decision will eventually be made, but we have already discussed this possibility," the scientist noted.
According to him, the anthropomorphic robot created at MIPT, which resembles an adult in size and weight, is ideal for studying how convenient and possible it will be to work inside and outside the ship in space. According to the professor, these space robots will be powered by conventional lithium batteries, as they are capable of generating high peak currents, but he does not rule out the possibility that fundamentally new batteries, including nuclear power sources, will be created for long-term flights.
"We started working on robots back in 2018, and the development of this machine began four years ago, after our student team won the football World Cup for humanoid robots. This victory helped us get a government grant to build a robot the size of an adult with a "natural" manner of movement. Thanks to the use of AI, we managed to solve this problem within the framework of a fully state-owned project and at some points even surpass our Chinese colleagues," said Professor Babayev.
According to him, the algorithms developed by Russian scientists are more than competitive. In particular, recently, engineers from MIPT managed to win one of the competitions that took place in South Korea, using domestic software to control the operation of a Chinese robot. Russian scientists have managed to set a world record for the running speed of an anthropomorphic machine and bypass similar machines manufactured in China, but running on different software.
As Professor Babaev noted, progress in the development of the Russian anthropomorphic robot is limited by the fact that so far scientists have collected only one copy of this machine, which does not allow engineers to take risks when improving the robot. The appearance of a second or third robot will allow developers to accelerate development and make this machine faster and more agile, as well as develop a lightweight model that could participate in international competitions and compete with Chinese counterparts.
About the robot
The SERVANTBOT was presented to the public at the III International Robotics Festival RoboScience Hackathon 2025, which is taking place this week at the Kapitsa Phystech Lyceum Technopark near Moscow. As part of this demonstration, a Russian anthropomorphic robot and three Chinese machines of a similar class took part in a short collective "race", and a domestic robot also shot an arrow at a target.
A distinctive feature of the Russian robot is the unique leg layout of this machine, in which all the motors are placed in the hip area, and the knee and ankle of the robot are arranged in such a way that it allows it to perform effective foot swings and take maximum and smooth soft steps. Due to this, the robot does not "stomp" like most other machines of its kind created in China and other foreign countries.
