Jan. 26, 2023

Show Evolution! AI Basketball Robot

CUE was originally developed by Toyota volunteers in their free time as an AI basketball-playing robot in 2017. Since then, CUE had been steadily increasing its shooting rate and distance, and participated in the three-point shootout in the B. League All-Star Game in January 2020 (Please refer to the development diaries of CUE for more details). Then, on December 24, 2022, the sixth generation "CUE6" was unveiled at the half-time of the Alvark Tokyo vs. Shiga Lakes game. The scene was featured on the TV program Car & Future^*1 by Aichi Television Broadcasting Co., Ltd. Please take time to watch the video clip (The video is available until 0:00, January 1, 2030).

Links to previous updates

1^st story: An in-house challenge: novices embark on a new project from scratch

2^nd story: CUE3 Shoots for a Guinness World Records^TM Title

3^rd story: CUE4 Attempts to Join a B. League All-Star Game

4^th story: CUE5 Developers Continue to Forge Ahead to Give Back

History of CUE's development (as of the end of January 2023)

April 1, 2017: The CUE project started as a voluntary activity.

March 28, 2018: The first generation CUE debuted at the home games of the Alvark Tokyo.

May 1, 2018: The CUE project decided to continue as an official task.

November 24, 2018: The second generation CUE2 debuted at the home games of the Alvark Tokyo.

April 10, 2019: The third generation CUE3 debuted at the home games of the Alvark Tokyo. Its related clips recorded over 30 million views worldwide.

May 17, 2019: CUE3 sets a Guinness World Records^TM: "Most consecutive basketball free throws by a humanoid robot (assisted)―2,020."

November 16, 2019: The fourth generation CUE4 debuted at the home games of the Alvark Tokyo.

January 18, 2020: CUE4 participated in the three-point shootout in the B. League All-Star Game.

May 10, 2020: CUE4 won the BREAK THE BORDER AWARD^*2 for the B.LEAGUE AWARD SHOW 2019-20.

July 25-August 8, 2021: The fifth-generation CUE5 debuted and showcased its skills during the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020.

December 24, 2022: The sixth generation "CUE6" was unveiled at the half-time of the Alvark Tokyo vs. Shiga Lakes game.

CUEs played against professional and college basketball players in several TV programs.

References

*1	Airing every Thursday from 22:58 (JST) on Aichi Television Broadcasting Co., Ltd. Available in Aichi, Gifu, and Mie prefectures in Japan (as of the end of January 2023).
*2	The award given to activities that contribute to the Japan basketball industry through efforts that break the borders of existing mindsets.