Step 01
Choose a skill
Pick a physical task to teach Ronin: sorting, staging, stacking, folding, assembly, or your own idea.
What happens when yougive AI a body?
We're bringing together curious minds for an AI and robotics hackathon, on a real humanoid robot.
Build AI that works in the real world.
We're in the early days of physical AI. Models have learned to read, write, and see; the next step is AI that acts in the physical world. This challenge puts you on that frontier, with a robot that has to see, move, and handle real objects.
- 01
Each team picks one physical skill to teach Ronin, from sorting parts to folding, stacking, or assembly.
- 02
You teach it through matched-pair teleoperation: you drive Ronin through the task while every camera view and joint is recorded.
- 03
You train a model on those recordings and deploy it on the real robot. How well it performs comes down to your choice of task and the quality of your data.
The final round is simple to judge and hard to win: whose robot can do its real-world task autonomously.
An AI-powered humanoid robot.
Ronin is Polymorph's humanoid robot: one modular core, with hardware and control software designed and built in-house. It is the robot every team will teach, train, and deploy on.
ManipulationGrippers
VisionTwo eye cameras and two wrist cameras, on an active neck
Data4 synchronized cameras at 30 fps, recorded on every episode
Control60 Hz teleoperation and data recording
FootprintSized for human-scale workstations
How the challenge works.
Step 02
Collect task demonstrations
Drive Ronin through the task with matched-pair teleoperation. Every episode records four synchronized cameras at 30 fps and every joint at 60 Hz.
Step 03
Train the AI
Demonstrations are split into labelled subtasks and used to train a vision-language-action model: cameras, joint states, and an instruction in; arm and gripper commands out.
Step 04
Deploy it on the real robot
Run your model on Ronin, live from its cameras and joint states, and test it on the real task. Then compete.
FAQ
We have a limited number of robots, so spots are limited.
Dates, location, and format are shared with the waitlist first.
Who
Robotics/AI enthusiasts
All backgrounds welcome
Robot
Ronin
Polymorph's humanoid
Spots
Limited
Set by the number of robots
Dates
Coming soon
Shared with the waitlist first
Who can apply?
Anyone curious about building with AI and robots. Students, engineers, researchers, and makers are all welcome. Tell us what you would teach Ronin when you join the waitlist.
Why are spots limited?
We have a limited number of robots, so spots are limited. Join the waitlist and we will contact selected participants directly with next steps.
Does each team get its own robot?
Yes. Each team gets its own Ronin to work on. You collect your demonstrations, train your AI, and deploy it on that robot.
Do I need my own robot or equipment?
No. Every team works on Ronin. Selected participants will get everything they need to know before the event.
What kind of skill can we teach?
A physical task at a table: sorting, staging, stacking, loading, folding, assembly, or something new. The best skills can be judged on one question: does the robot complete them on its own?
When and where is it?
Dates and location will be announced to the waitlist first.
Can I help without competing?
Yes. We are looking for volunteers and partners. See the options below.
Pick your role.
Join the hackathon
For anyone who wants to compete. This is the only way to apply for a spot, and spots are limited by the number of robots.
- Join the waitlist through the sign-up form
- Tell us what skill you would teach Ronin
- Selected participants are contacted directly
Join the waitlist
The sign-up form opens soon. Check back shortly.
Volunteer
Help make the event happen. Not for people applying to compete.
- Mentor teams on AI, robotics, or hardware
- Judge the final round
- Help run the event on the day
Partner or sponsor
For companies, universities, and organizations.
- Sponsor the event or prizes
- Host the hackathon or provide space
- Bring a real-world task for teams to teach
Questions? [email protected]
What will you teach Ronin?
We have a limited number of robots, so spots are limited.