Attention Gundam enthusiasts! If you’ve ever dreamt of piloting a Gundam, a Tokyo startup offers a cool $3 million opportunity.
With their intricate designs, Gundams symbolize the pinnacle of technology and might in the animated world. One tech visionary was so captivated that he steered his firm into constructing a life-sized version.
Tsubame Industries, a Tokyo-based startup, presents a 4.5-meter-tall (14.8-foot) four-wheeled robot for sale, mirroring the iconic “Mobile Suit Gundam” from the beloved Japanese anime series. Priced at $3 million, the robot, dubbed ARCHAX after the Archaeopteryx dinosaur, boasts cockpit monitors showcasing visuals from external cameras. This enables the operator inside to manoeuvre the robot’s arms and hands via joysticks.
Weighing in at 3.5 tons, ARCHAX can stand upright in its “robot mode” or zip around at speeds up to 10 km/h (6 mph) in its “vehicle mode.” As per Reuters, this robotic marvel is set to debut at the Japan Mobility Show.
“Japan excels in animation, games, robots, and cars. Merging these aspects into a singular creation felt right,” expressed Ryo Yoshida, the youthful 25-year-old CEO of Tsubame Industries. “I aspired to craft something that resonates with ‘This is Japan’.”
Yoshida envisions manufacturing five of these mechanical wonders primarily for affluent robot aficionados. However, he believes the robots could also play roles in future disaster response or space exploration.
Introduced to fabrication young, Yoshida honed his skills at his grandfather’s metalworking shop, later establishing a firm that manufactures myoelectric prosthetic hands. Passionate about sustaining Japan’s manufacturing excellence, he stated, “I’m committed to inheriting wisdom from prior generations and preserving our legacy.
