A South Korean research team has unveiled a humanoid robot capable of replicating Michael Jackson's famous moonwalk dance. The dancing skills of the robot, developed by Professor Park Hae-won and colleagues at Korea Advanced Institute of Science & Technology's (KAIST) Humanoid Robot Research Centre (HuboLab), not only make it a nifty mover, but also have implications for future android-like designs. That's because it can also reach speeds of 12km/h and maintain its balance on uneven ground - even with its "eyes" closed. In addition to the moonwalk it can also replicate another famous dance - rock and roll's duckwalk. The team says the machine has been designed for real-world use in industrial settings, where versatile robots could support or replace human workers. Standing at 165cm and weighing 75kg, the humanoid has been built to resemble the proportions of a person. Researchers at KAIST designed and manufactured all of the robot's key components - including motors, reducers and motor drivers - securing what they describe as technological independence in hardware. They also trained an artificial intelligence controller using a self-developed reinforcement learning algorithm in a virtual environment, before successfully applying it in the real world. The team say this overcame the so-called "Sim-to-Real Gap", a common problem in robotics where algorithms work in simulations but fail when applied to physical machines. At present, the robot can run at 3.25m/s (about 12km/h) on flat ground and step over obstacles more than 30cm high. The researchers aim to increase this to 4.0m/s (14km/h), improve step-climbing beyond 40cm, and enable it to climb ladders. Professor Park's team is collaborating with colleagues at KAIST and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) to develop the robot's upper body, with the aim of creating a complete humanoid able to carry out tasks such as carrying heavy objects, operating valves and cranks, opening doors and pushing carts while walking.