Summary
A robot built by four people in New Zealand solved a 4x4x4 puzzle cube in 9.80 seconds, a time Guinness World Records lists as the fastest for a robot in that category. The attempt took place in Christchurch, New Zealand, on 16 October 2026. Guinness World Records credits the result to Hayden Watson, Johann Torres, Maz Cameron and Caleb Everitt, listed on the entry as all of New Zealand. The record title is “Fastest robot to solve a 4x4x4 puzzle cube”, and the entry logs the result in minutes and seconds, with the figure given as 9.80. A year of work before the clock started The team spent a year developing and refining the robot in preparation for the record attempt, according to the record page. Two parts of the build are named there. The robot uses four cameras to recognise the cube’s colours, and it uses high-speed drone motors to solve the puzzle. Those are the only components the entry describes. The two named components are tied to two tasks on the page. The cameras are described as recognising the cube’s colours, and the motors are described as solving the puzzle. The entry does not divide the work any further than that. The description of the robot on the record page runs to a single sentence, covering the year of preparation, the cameras and the motors. What the record covers The entry is set out in four fields, headed who, what, where and when. The who is the four builders, the what is 9.80 recorded in minutes and seconds, the where is New Zealand with Christchurch named in brackets, and the when is 16 October 2026. Guinness World Records states the time as 9.80 seconds in its written description of the record, and as 9.80 in the minutes and seconds field at the top of the entry. The page lists the four names in the order Hayden Watson, Johann Torres, Maz Cameron and Caleb Everitt. The title applies to a robot rather than to a human solver, and the four builders are credited jointly, with no individual singled out on the entry. The record page carries the reference 15-115045, and the title sits on the Guinness World Records site under the heading “Fastest robot to solve a 4x4x4 puzzle cube”. Make Tech Easier has previously covered the 3×3 cube’s origins in 1974. What the entry does not say Nothing on the record page breaks the 9.80 seconds into a scanning phase and a turning phase. The entry also gives no detail on the number of moves used, the software behind the solve, or the materials in the frame. What it does record is the year of development, the camera count, the motor type, the four names, the place, the date and the final time. One figure is listed for this title, 9.80 seconds, rather than a set of runs or an average. For a 4x4x4 puzzle cube, the published Guinness World Records mark for a robot now stands at 9.80 seconds. The entry on the Guinness World Records site lists the location as Christchurch, New Zealand, and the date as 16 October 2026. Sources:
- Guinness World Records, Fastest robot to solve a 4x4x4 puzzle cube: https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/115045-fastest-robot-to-solve-a-4x4x4-rubiks-cube - Make Tech Easier, the 3×3 cube’s origins in 1974: https://maketecheasier.com/rubiks-cube-1974-gods-number-20/