The international tourists and locals in Dubai, capital of the United Arab Emirates, were amazed by the spectacular martial arts performance delivered by a group of humanoid robots at the 2026 China Media Group (CMG) Spring Festival Gala, which was televised on Monday.
The highly-energetic display saw the versatile robots and young Kung Fu practitioners perform a series of impressive choreographed stunts and synchronized moves in a breathtaking stage segment.
The robots also used traditional Kung Fu weapons such as swords and nunchuks, demonstrating impressive speed, balance, coordination and precision as they executed the pulsating performance in style.
The energetic performance amazed customers at the Dubai Mall, the largest shopping mall in the world, as the landmark was decorated to celebrate the Chinese New Year.
The audience were glued to a giant screen set on the first floor of the shopping mall and kept taking photos of the most breath-taking moments.
"Very impressive that the technology is that far. Robotics can fight like human beings, especially, all these, how to say, getting in balance that fast, making balance," said an Austrian tourist.
Some audience said the whole gala is full of Chinese characteristics.
"We think all the programs, including singing and sketches, are exactly the shows that we, the Chinese people, will love," said Kan Xingshu, an overseas Chinese from the United States.
The locals in the Dubai International City, one of the largest residential areas for Chinese people in Dubai, were also impressed by the robot martial arts performance.
The gala, which was presented on Monday afternoon local time through a giant screen set up at the community, attracted a large audience.
"I'm very astonished by this robot show. I couldn't believe it is real, but as we see it's real. It's very genius show," said a member of the audience.
Commonly known as "Chunwan" in Chinese, the gala has been broadcast live every Chinese New Year's Eve since 1983 and has been recognized by Guinness World Records as the most-watched annual television program on the planet.
The Spring Festival is the most important traditional holiday for the Chinese people. It falls on Tuesday this year, ushering in a Year of the Horse -- the seventh of the 12 animals in the Chinese zodiac.
The Spring Festival itself was inscribed on UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in December 2024.
Robot martial arts performance at CMG Spring Festival Gala wows UAE audience
Robot martial arts performance at CMG Spring Festival Gala wows UAE audience
The Strait of Hormuz, one of the world's most important energy shipping routes, is fully open to commercial vessels, the U.S. and Iran confirmed separately on Tuesday after negotiators from the two countries, under Qatari and Pakistani mediation, concluded the first round of talks in central Switzerland.
The developments came a day after mediators announced encouraging outcomes from the first round of indirect U.S.-Iran talks in Switzerland, including a 60-day roadmap toward a final agreement and mechanisms to ensure commercial shipping security through the strait and end hostilities in Lebanon.
U.S. and Iranian negotiators began their talks on Sunday at the Buergenstock mountain resort in central Switzerland, marking the first direct talks between the two sides since the signing of the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) last week.
According to the MoU, the United States and Iran declare an immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts, including in Lebanon, and commit to negotiating and achieving the final peace agreement in maximum 60 days.
Ali Bahreini, Iranian ambassador and permanent representative to the United Nations (UN) Office at Geneva, announced on Tuesday that the Strait of Hormuz is fully open to commercial vessels without tolls.
He said the two sides have decided to set up a communication line to ensure the safe passage of commercial ships through the Strait of Hormuz.
Bahreini said that the situation will be reviewed after 60 days, depending on negotiations between Iran and the United States.
Separately, U.S. President Donald Trump said on a social media post the same day that given "major concessions" by Iran, including Iran's consent to the highest-level nuclear inspections, the U.S. will "allow the Hormuz Strait to remain open, with no further blockade."
Iran and Oman issued a joint statement on Tuesday affirming their commitment to ensuring safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz, stressing that all arrangements relating to the waterway "must fully respect their sovereignty and sovereign rights."
The two countries agreed to continue discussions through a joint working team between their foreign ministries to reach an understanding on the future management of navigation in the strait and the related charging service "costs," read the statement.
Beyond the political statements, data from maritime analysts confirmed the resurgence in traffic through the Strait of Hormuz.
Shipping analytics firm Kpler reported that at least 36 commercial vessels transited the strait on Monday, the highest single-day tally since the war began last February, signaling that traffic had rebounded to nearly one-third of the strait's normal peacetime traffic, which averages around 120 vessel crossings per day.
On Tuesday, two more supertankers that had been stranded in the Persian Gulf sailed through the waterway, each loaded with 2 million barrels of crude, according to data from the London Stock Exchange Group and Kpler.
Before the conflict, more than one-fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas moved through the waterway, which is also important for grain and consumer goods shipments into the Gulf.
Despite the tangible progress on maritime access, the U.S. and Iran remain at odds on key elements of the broader deal, issuing conflicting accounts over whether Iran has agreed to full IAEA nuclear inspections and how unfrozen Iranian assets may be used.
Iran, US separately confirm Strait of Hormuz reopened to commercial shipping
