8,000 Mile Auto5Graph: Ken Owens signs superfan’s jersey l #UniteThePride l Vodafone UK

We conducted the world’s first 5G shirt signing, connecting rugby fans in the UK with the British and Irish Lions players in South Africa, 8,000 miles away.

Rocco Lock is a 5-year-old Lions superfan, famous for his impressions of his heroes in the Welsh team. To reward him for his support, we gave Rocco a surprise visit from his idol Ken Owens, who shared personal words of encouragement before the 5G-powered robot, being controlled by Owens, wrote a personal message and signature directly onto his jersey, live in front of his eyes.

Using a precision robot, motion control technology and Vodafone’s low latency 5G network, the Lions players signed jerseys live for fans in the UK, from over 8,000 miles away. As the player makes contact on a tablet with a stylus in South Africa, a robot arm stationed in London mirrors the player’s hand movements, allowing them to write directly onto the fan’s jersey in real time, while chatting on a video call.