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Phoenix666 [soylentnews.org] writes:

In the suburbs of China's capital, a 32-year-old engineer creates the kind of larger-than-life, shapeshifting robots that most have only seen in "Transformers" movies [phys.org].

Sun Shiqian's roomy warehouse on the outskirts of Beijing houses a hulking menagerie, from a sleepy cow to a fiery metal dragon that stands 4.9 metres (16 feet) tall at the flip of a switch.

A graduate of China's prestigious Central Academy of Fine Arts, Sun worked as an engineer before deciding to devote himself full-time to what he calls "robot arts".

"As a child, I loved watching cartoons with robots," Sun told AFP.

"But I noticed that they were all from either Japan or the United States. There were no Chinese robots."

At the World Robot Conference in Beijing last month, the sculptor showcased an ox with the mechanical ability to transform into a robot "gladiator," equipped with steel abs and all.

None of them is called Optimus Prime [tfwiki.net].

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