The samurai of old are widely regarded as being among the best warriors that ever lived, and with good reason. Although those days are long gone, the Japanese people are still keeping their traditions alive to some extent, which is why you can still see sword masters wielding katanas even today. However, times are quickly changing and it seems that even the most skilled human swordsmen around have a hard time competing against the samurai robot built by Yaskawa. If you’ve been paying attention to the latest technological advancements you probably already know that highly advanced humanoid robots are still several years away, however, the samurai robot in question doesn’t actually need a full body because it can apparently outperform a sword master with just one arm.

In what the company calls the Yaskawa Bushido Project, Machii went through a number of traditional Iaijutsu challenges as a sensor-studded suit tracked his movements. The MH24 Motoman manufacturing robot monitored and copied every bit of his posture, form, and gesturing, from his arm and sword placement to his head and leg position..

The robot samurai vs master swordsman [Video]: