Shenzhen AI tennis 'partner' goes global

Two minutes after Zhang Lu scanned the QR code on a green, smart shared locker and completed authentication, a tennis robot rolled out like a ready-made hitting partner from the locker onto the rooftop courts of Bao’an Super Tennis Center on a sunny winter afternoon recently.

Marketed as Acemate, the tennis robot was developed by Bao’an-based OneRobotics (Shenzhen) Co. The shared cabinet can store up to four such robots, each available for rent as a tennis partner. It is the world’s first AI-powered tennis-robot shared locker that has been officially launched, ushering in a new era of sports equipment sharing.

A man activates Acemate, an AI-powered tennis robot developed by Bao’an-based OneRobotics. The company calls Acemate the first of its kind in the world. Photos courtesy of WeChat account " 宝安文体通"

As he poured a bag of tennis balls into the robot’s hopper, Zhang watched it come to life with a steady “thwack, thwack, thwack.”

"Players simply bring a racket and go after completing the rental procedures at the shared locker," said Feng Yi, product manager of Acemate at OneRobotics.

A player engages with the Acemate AI tennis robot during a session at Bao’an Super Tennis Center.

Acemate is equipped with a professional vision system that tracks incoming ball trajectories in real time and dynamically adjusts the exit speed, spin and placement to match the player’s level — creating a lifelike training partner rather than a static ball machine, according to Feng.

After a rally, users can open the companion app to view an instant report of performance metrics such as average and maximum ball speed, net clearance and in-play hit rate.

“Unlike traditional ball machines, Acemate can move to collect and return balls, producing accurate returns while saving players the hassle of picking up balls,” said Feng.

After a rally, users can access real-time performance statistics via the Acemate companion app.

Feng said that Bao’an’s long-term investment in high-quality sports infrastructure, like the Super Tennis Center, made the district an ideal choice for the product’s first public deployment.

Rental costs 88 yuan (US$12.68) per hour — “cheaper than hiring an amateur hitting partner, and you don’t need to convince anyone to come out and play,” Zhang said.

An Acemate robot rallies with a player at Bao’an Super Tennis Center, offering a high-tech twist on traditional training.

Children and coaches welcomed Acemate’s debut.

"It’s like playing a match with a robot!” said Yu Minwei, a second-grade student at Gongle Primary School. A tennis coach surnamed Tan at the center said: “AI is the future. This helps students train more effectively.”

OneRobotics says more than 2,000 Acemate units have been deployed worldwide, with Bao’an serving as the company’s core research and application hub.