MegaBots (Photo : YouTube)
A Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign was started in order to raise funds to build a giant battle bot. The Boston-based MegaBots Incorporated is planning to develop and create a huge battle bot that will faceoff with a similar battle bot from Japan.
According to Live Science, the Kickstarter campaign has already managed to raise $200,000. The campaign's funding target is to reach $500,000. The crowdfunding campaign will end on Sept. 18.
The team from MegaBots issued a challenge in June to its one and only rival, the Japan-based Suidobashi Heavy Industry. The challenge video was posted on YouTube and after a week, the Japanese bot maker agreed to take on the duel.
Suidobashi agreed to take on the challenge under one simple condition, the duel has to be in melee. This means that the bots will have to go head-to-head without the use of ranged weaponries.
MegaBots is the developer and creator of the MK. II robot. The fund raised via Kickstarter will be used to equip the bot with additional weapons, armor and hydraulics. The team behind the bot also aims to use lightweight metals as the bots' body in order to gain speed and mobility.
MegaBots co-founder Gui Cavalcanti told CNet, "The upgraded Mk. II will be the definition of an American robot. She'll be five times faster and powerful, self-balancing and armored for hand-to-hand combat."
The current iteration of the MK. II weighs six tons, which is still considered lightweight. The bots' current weaponry is designed to shoot projectiles at a safe distance. The melee rule issued by its Japanese rival spells serious design overhaul to the bot to which its developer plans to achieve if the Kickstarter target is achieved.
