In February 2023, Stokes Robotics brought its robots to one of the biggest stages in entertainment. Eight of our Unitree Go1 quadruped robots performed alongside Jason Derulo and his dance team at the Super Bowl LVII TikTok Tailgate Party in Glendale, Arizona, as Derulo debuted his new song, “Saturday/Sunday.”
The tailgate show, headlined by Derulo and The Black Keys, streamed live on TikTok to millions of viewers. It was a proud moment for our team and for Carl Junction, Missouri.
From Carl Junction to the Super Bowl
The opportunity came through TLC Creative Technology, an entertainment-industry customer of Stokes Robotics. Once the call came in, the timeline was tight. Choreography and programming that would normally take about a month was completed in roughly a week.
Our team worked directly with Derulo and his choreographers to build a routine where the robots moved in sync with the human dancers. Rehearsals began in Burbank, California, followed by a final on-site rehearsal in Glendale the day before the show.
Robert Stokes, owner and president of Stokes Robotics, called the experience of adjusting a dance routine with Derulo’s choreographers surreal, and noted that rhythm isn’t exactly his specialty. The robots, however, nailed it.
The Robots Behind the Performance
The performance featured eight Unitree Go1 robots, four-legged platforms capable of agile, coordinated movement. Stokes Robotics is a distributor and secondary developer for Unitree, which means we don’t just sell these robots. We program, customize, and deploy them for real-world applications.
The Super Bowl routine showed what that development work makes possible: precise, synchronized motion across multiple robots, timed to live music and human performers.
Built to Protect and Improve Lives
As fun as the dance floor was, entertainment isn’t the core mission. Our robots are primarily deployed for:
- Law enforcement and public safety, keeping people out of dangerous situations
- Education and research, giving students and institutions hands-on robotics experience
- Agriculture and manufacturing, delivering practical automation solutions
“The whole idea is to use them to protect people and save lives,” Stokes said.
The performance also highlighted something we see in classrooms every day: a routine like the one featured at the Super Bowl is well within reach for students in a robotics class. We hope it inspired a new wave of interest in what robots can do.
About Stokes Robotics
Robert and Lynnette Stokes founded Stokes Educational Services, LLC, in 2005 and launched the Stokes Robotics name in 2023. Stokes Robotics sets up robots for corrections facilities, law enforcement agencies, security teams, schools, and manufacturing and industrial sites.
Based in Carl Junction, Missouri, we help organizations find, customize, and deploy the right robotics platform for the job.
Interested in Unitree robots or a custom robotics solution? Contact Stokes Robotics to learn more.
