Imagine this: deep within an underground boxing arena, one humanoid robot lands a powerful jab, sending its opponent reeling. The crowd erupts, and the referee’s smack on the mat signals a knockout. A booming announcer fuels the frenzy, urging everyone to chant, “Robot fight club! Robot fight club!”
“It felt incredibly surreal that this was happening in 2025,” remarked Jonathan Moon, 26, CEO of Budbreak, a startup developing vineyard inspection robots. “It felt like something straight out of 2040.”
The scene was a wild mix: some attendees sported elaborate steampunk attire, while others, fresh from their tech jobs, wore vintage Microsoft Windows tees. Fake hundred-dollar bills were scattered across the ring floor, techno music pulsed, and neon lights highlighted advertisements for futuristic flying cars.
This wasn’t an unusual Friday night in San Francisco. The city’s thriving artificial intelligence scene has ignited a renaissance of live events and cultural experiences. As people have flocked to the city, tech workers have sought out memorable experiences for a reprieve from their laptops.
Beyond the robot battles, San Francisco’s event landscape includes workshops to craft “Taser knives” (featuring rubber blades wrapped in aluminum tape) for mock combat. A recent “performative male contest”—a viral trend involving men sipping matcha and carrying trendy accessories—took place in Alamo Square, judged by an AI. And engineers have taken over bars to duel in AI-themed trivia showdowns.
Victor Pontis, co-founder and CEO of the event-hosting platform Luma, noted a significant increase in searches for San Francisco activities over the past year. Last month alone, nearly 2,000 live events, from hackathons to group dinners, took place – almost double the number from a year prior. Notably, AI-centric events surged more than fourfold, reaching 578.
These aren’t just typical networking events. Tech professionals are actively seeking genuine community and connections outside their work. Chris Miles, 38, a software engineer at AI chip startup Quadric, was drawn to a recent AI-themed trivia night precisely for this reason.
“I’m keen to attend more lighthearted events like this,” shared Miles, who diligently scans Luma for new opportunities and aims to participate weekly.
Event organizers and hosts are finding themselves overwhelmed by unexpected demand. For instance, venture capital firm SignalFire hosted an AI trivia night at Standard Deviant Brewing in the Mission district, near OpenAI (ChatGPT’s creator and event sponsor). The overwhelming interest—over 600 RSVPs, with only half approved—forced them to choose a larger venue than initially planned.
That evening, no query was too obscure for the audience, comprised mainly of software engineers. Questions often delved into technical specifics, such as “What does this code output?”
Josh Constine, 40, a venture partner at SignalFire, explained that when tech professionals have limited free time, they seek out “something weird and special that feels like it could only happen in SF.”
Steve Jang, managing partner at Kindred Ventures, observed that San Francisco’s history of tech booms and busts has consistently led to new waves of social activities mirroring the era’s technological progress.
He recalled friends gathering three decades ago during the dot-com boom to watch rudimentary robots duke it out in Fort Mason. Now, the scene repeats itself, a sentiment that “just rhymes with everything that the city’s been about.”
The robot boxing ring continued to captivate the audience, who were enthralled by the humanoids – roughly the size and agility of a third grader.
Launched in July by Vitaly and Xenia Bulatov, “Ultimate Fighting Bots” aimed to deliver an engaging “tech event that doesn’t suck.” The couple oversees the robotics section at Frontier Tower, a prominent tech community in San Francisco’s Mid-Market district, which served as the battleground for these robot showdowns.
The latest live-streamed event showcased six robots from Chinese manufacturers Unitree Robotics and Booster Robotics, supplied by Singaporean firm FrodoBots AI. Bulatov revealed that each humanoid, custom-programmed for combat by his team, carried a price tag of $30,000 to $60,000.
Tickets to this highly sought-after event were $100, allowing attendees to bring a guest. While proceeds covered venue decorations and staff, Xenia Bulatov stated their ultimate ambition is to develop a profitable robot sporting league.
Operated by individuals using video game controllers, these robots were given elaborate backstories, unique names, distinct costumes, and even dramatic “coaches” played by actors. One robot, “Googlord,” embodied a Google intern complete with a colorful pinwheel hat, while “Peuter Steel”—a playful jab at investor Peter Thiel—sported a “CEO” chain and a black puffer vest.
The final bout pitted “Peuter Steel” against “Waifu.exe,” a robot in a dress, whose name referenced the AI companion in Elon Musk’s xAI chatbot, Grok.
“This truly captures peak San Francisco culture,” declared Carter Crouch, 32, a former Amazon data analyst who journeyed from Los Angeles specifically for the event.
The next robot boxing event is scheduled for September 27th. Despite common anxieties surrounding robots, Xenia Bulatov highlighted the emotional connection these humanoids sparked in the audience. The organizers aim to create enjoyable spaces where people can form “real-life relationships” through their shared fascination with robots.
“We customize these robots, giving them human-like appearances,” she explained. “Then, we involve them in deeply human activities that naturally draw people in and create connections.”
