Avatar XPRIZE Finalist: Multi-Sensory Telepresence with Sensiks

The Core Challenge

Design and build a bidirectional multi-sensory telepresence system that allows an operator to act through a humanoid robot anywhere in the world with minimal latency and full situational awareness.

• Sub-100 ms end-to-end latency for control and feedback.
• 5+ sensory channels synchronized in real time.
• Safe behaviour under degraded network conditions.
• Usable, intuitive experience for non-expert operators.

The I-Botics Consortium

Sensiks joined the Dutch I-Botics consortium: a collaboration between the University of Twente, high-tech companies and sensory innovators. Together, the team combined deep robotics, AI and network engineering with Sensiks’ multi-sensory integration expertise.

• University of Twente – robotics & mechatronics.
• Industry partners – AI, sensing, mechanical and systems engineering.
• Sensiks – multi-sensory orchestration, cross-modal synchronization, bio-adaptive control.

Out of 130 teams from 36 countries, I-Botics advanced to the finals and secured 5th place overall.

Multi-Modal Synchronization

The I-Botics system integrated visual, auditory, haptic, proprioceptive and environmental signals into a single coherent experience for the operator.

• High-resolution stereoscopic vision for depth and precision.
• Spatial 3D audio for directional awareness.
• Haptic and force feedback from robotic manipulators.
• Proprioceptive cues for body position and movement.
• Environmental signals such as temperature and pressure.

Sensiks applied a decade of multi-sensory orchestration experience to keep these channels aligned within tight cross-modal binding windows.

Latency, Resilience & Safety

Telepresence fails if the system cannot cope with real networks. The Avatar XPRIZE finals intentionally introduced bandwidth constraints, latency spikes and packet loss.

• Sub-100 ms latency targets between operator and avatar.
• Adaptive compression and predictive buffering strategies.
• Priority protocols for critical sensory and control data.
• Graceful degradation and safety protocols on network failure.

During the finals, a network-induced freeze triggered safety measures, after which the system recovered and completed remaining tasks – demonstrating robustness rather than brittle performance.

Global Scale & Structure

• 130 competing teams from 36 countries.
• $10 million prize pool for breakthrough telepresence technology.
• Qualification: basic telepresence and sensor integration.
• Semifinals: complex manipulation and network resilience tasks.
• Finals: high-stakes, real-world scenarios under degraded networks.

I-Botics advanced through each stage to become one of the world’s leading avatar systems.

The Finals & the Network Challenge

In the finals, XPRIZE organizers stressed systems with aggressive network disruptions. When connectivity dropped, the I-Botics avatar temporarily froze while safety and recovery protocols engaged.

Instead of catastrophic failure, the system:

• Detected degraded network conditions in real time.
• Activated safety controls to prevent unsafe movements.
• Recovered and resumed operation.
• Completed tasks to achieve 5th place globally.

In real-world deployments—remote surgery, disaster response, hazardous industrial sites—this kind of graceful degradation is more important than peak performance in perfect lab conditions.

Technical & Strategic Validation

• World-class real-time multi-sensory integration capabilities.
• Proven performance in high-stakes, international competition.
• Robust, network-resilient architectures with safety-by-design.
• Direct transfer of telepresence learnings into mental health and wellbeing products.

The same engineering used to control a robot safely over unstable networks now powers Sensiks’ bio-adaptive AI, Sensory Augmentation Layer (SAL) software and cloud-connected pod infrastructure.

Ecosystem & Collaboration

• Deep integration into the Dutch high-tech ecosystem (Eindhoven Brainport).
• Active collaboration with University of Twente and other research partners.
• Experience working in complex consortia with industry and academic stakeholders.
• Increased visibility among robotics, AI and healthcare innovators worldwide.

For partners, clients and investors, Avatar XPRIZE performance offers objective proof that Sensiks can deliver at the frontier of multi-sensory technology.