Tech

Japanese factory unveils real-life colossal ‘Gundam’ anime robot

A Japanese company has made a popular anime cartoon larger than life, unveiling a massive, 55,000-pound “Gundam” robot that stands 59 feet tall.

New footage released Monday shows the mammoth machine, which looms over a factory in Yokohama outside of Tokyo, moving its arms, legs, and torso without difficulty — and it even kneels, CNet.com reported.

The newly unveiled robot, built on a mechanical skeleton, was completed in July, and was even blessed by Shinto priests during a traditional ceremony called a jotoshiki before its head was attached.

Monday’s video release marked the first large-scale public viewing of the mechanical beast thus far, the outlet said.

Located at Yokohama’s Yamashita Pier, the Gundam robot has been in the works since 2014, including two years for planning and development.

Gundams are large military machines featured in the Japanese science fiction franchise “Mobile Suit Gundam,” according to Newsweek.

The real-life giant is based on a RX-78-2 model in the anime series, the magazine reported. The Gundam’s help the Earth Federation during the One Year War, according to the series.

The Gundam Factory Yokohama, which produced the real robot, was due to host a grand opening and unveiling event next month but has had to postpone due to the coronavirus pandemic, the outlet said.