The Robot Dog Olympics apprehended at the Ministry of Defence in Bristol.

To produce creative tech solutions for the British Army, teams of computer programmers competed in the Robot Dog Olympics.

At the Ministry of Defence (MoD) Abbey Wood near Bristol, some 40 coders from all around the UK gathered.

They were given the task of programming the robotic canines to execute a 50-meter sprint and acrobatics.

The session was “very fascinating in terms of teamwork,” according to Chris Burton of IBM.

Mr Burton, an IBM architect, said: “It’s been fantastic to get into a room and begin experimenting with the technology.

“It’s just to see what you can achieve with these robots.”

“I’ve been extremely astonished by how agile and responsive the robotic dogs are,” said Natasha Dell, an algorithm developer at Thales. They are extremely mobile, and the speed with which they move, as well as the jobs they can do, is astonishing.”

The robots are not equipped with weaponry and are designed to perform non-offensive activities to safeguard troops.

Instead, they assist troops by exploring and monitoring disaster zones or bringing medication and food.

The Future Capabilities Group (FCG) at Defence Equipment and Support, the MoD’s procurement arm, hosted the event.

“Robotics and autonomous systems are becoming increasingly crucial in helping soldiers to function quicker, for longer, and to step back from some of the most hard and dangerous missions,” said Suzy Harris, the FCG’s head of expeditionary robotics.