The man behind some of the biggest televised fights ever wants to see humanoid robots in the ring next.
Ari Emanuel, the entertainment boss overseeing the WWE and UFC as CEO of TKO Group Holdings, went on the “Invest Like the Best with Patrick O’Shaughnessy,” where he spoke about the future of live events. Emanuel was also asked about his friendship with Elon Musk.
“I believe in Elon Musk,” Emanuel said.
Emanuel said he’s seen the progress of Tesla’s Optimus humanoid robot firsthand. Specifically, its hand movements.
Musk has previously said that Tesla has spent a lot of effort trying to develop human-like hands for Optimus, calling it “an incredibly difficult engineering challenge.” Emanuel said the progress in hand movements between generations was “unbelievable.”
It also gave him an idea.
“I came up to him, and I said, ‘I want to do UFC fights with the robots,'” Emanuel said.
It doesn’t sound like Musk dismissed the thought. In fact, Emanuel said, the billionaire showed him robots that could throw punches and kicks. He floated the idea of a fight between Chinese and American robots, which podcast host and investor O’Shaughnessy said “everyone in the world would watch.”
Emanuel made it clear that he’s no expert in the algorithms and data centers that make AI possible, but he does know entertainment. He said he knows how to create “really great live events” and monetize them.
In 2023, he led the merger of the WWE and UFC owner Endeavor Group Holdings.
In a new era of AI-generated content, Emanuel is leaning hard into live experiences, like food and art festivals and sporting events. Still, he praised Musk for his work on the long list of innovative and AI-powered companies he leads.
“If I’m a betting man, I’m betting on that dude,” Emanuel said.
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