Australia to host RoboCup in June 2019

Business Events Sydney (BESydney) and partners, UNSW and RoboCup Junior Australia, have won a bid to host RoboCup, the world’s largest annual robotics competition.

More than 2000 roboticists from 50 countries will compete at Sydney’s International Convention Centre Sydney (ICC Sydney) and Darling Harbour foreshore, creating artificial intelligence applications that solve real-world problems such as caregiving assistance and search and rescue. Some 600 teams will participate in the competition.

“RoboCup is developing the skills that will be needed for the jobs of the future and it’s testament to our own local talent that this leading event has chosen Sydney as its host,” CEO of BESydney, Lyn Lewis-Smith, said in a statement.

NSW chief scientist and engineer, Mary O'Kane, said she expects the event to spark students and young people’s interest in robotics and advanced autonomous systems, encouraging more to work in the technology space.

Chief scientist of Australia, Professor Ian Chubb, also expects the event to increase young people’s interest in STEM education, saying that these subjects are crucial to working a “rapidly-changing world”.

The University of NSW has won five world titles so far in its participation of RoboCup, taking out the Standard Platform League Robocup World Championship this year.

“We look forward to competing again in 2019 on home soil, showcasing the outstanding capabilities of UNSW’s computer science and engineering students,” UNSW president and vice-chancellor, Ian Jacobs, said in a statement.