Sony AI Table-Tennis Robot Ace Defeats Professional Players in Technical Milestone

Sony AI, part of Sony Research, equipped Ace with nine high-speed cameras, an event-based vision sensor, deep reinforcement learning and a precision robotic arm. The robot interprets ball speed, spin and placement in real time during table-tennis matches. The breakthrough moves AI beyond board games and video games into physical competition, while laying groundwork for high-speed perception and real-time control in manufacturing and service robots. Sony AI did not disclose its research and development spending.

Nature published the Ace study on April 23, 2026. In April 2025, the robot played five elite and two professional players under ITTF rules, winning three of its five matches against the elite competitors. Sony AI disclosed on June 10, 2026, that Ace had also defeated seven ranked professional players between February and April that year, including Miyuu Kihara, then ranked No. 26 in the world in women's singles, and two-time Olympic silver medalist Miu Hirano.