Run robotic run! Chinese humanoid robotic shatters human half-marathon world report by nearly 7 minutes
A Chinese humanoid robot has shattered the human half-marathon world record by almost seven minutes in competition showcasing the country’s technological leaps.
The winner, from Chinese smartphone maker Honor, completed the 21-kilometer race in 50 minutes and 26 seconds, according to a WeChat post by the Beijing Economic-Technical Development Area, where the event was held.
The time breaks the human record set by Ugandan Jacob Kiplimo, who finished the same distance in 57 minutes in March at a road race in Lisbon, Portugal.
The performance marked a significant increase from last year’s inaugural race, during which the winning robot finished in two hours, 40 minutes and 42 seconds.
However, this year’s event was not without hiccups – with one robot bumping into a barrier and another falling flat at the starting line.
Spectator Sun Zhigang – who had watched last year’s event – said the changes to this year’s race were ‘enormous’.
He said: ‘I feel enormous changes this year. It’s the first time robots have surpassed humans, and that’s something I never imagined.’
Another spectator, Wang Wen, said the robot’s record breaking performance might signal the beginning of a ‘new era’.
Team members celebrate next to winning Honor humanoid robot (centre) during a medial ceremony after the second Beijing E-Town Half Marathon
The robot (pictured) completed the race in 50 minutes and 26 seconds – faster than the human record set by Ugandan Jacob Kiplimo, who finished in 57 minutes
He said: ‘The robots’ speed far exceeds that of humans. This may signal the arrival of sort of a new era.’
The Beijing Economic-Technical Development Area, also known as Beijing E-Town, said around 40 per cent of participating robots navigated the course autonomously, while others were controlled remotely.
Chinese media outlet Global Times reported that a different, remotely-controlled robot from Honor was the first to cross the finish line in 48 minutes and 19 seconds.
However, it said the winning robot used autonomous navigation and received the winning title under the event’s weighted scoring rules.
Broadcaster CCTV reported the event’s runners-up, which were also from Honor and used autonomous navigation, finished the race in approximately 51 minutes and 53 minutes, respectively.
It also said a robot was used as a traffic officer to direct the participants with its arm gestures and voice throughout the race.
In China, technology – including robot development – has evolved into an area of international competition, with national security implications.
Beijing’s latest five-year plan vows to ‘target the frontiers of science and technology,’ – which includes speeding up the development of products like humanoid robots and their applications is part of the 2026-2030 plan for the world’s second-largest economy.
Around 40 per cent of participating robots navigated the course autonomously, while others were controlled remotely
The event’s runners-up, also from Honor, finished the race in approximately 51 minutes and 53 minutes
A report by Omdia, a London-based technology research and advisory group, recently ranked three Chinese companies – AGIBOT, Unitree Robotics and UBTech Robotics Corp – as the only first-tier vendors in its global assessment for shipment numbers for general-purpose embodied intelligent robots.
Each company shipped more than 1,000 units of the robot last year, with the first two companies shipping more than 5,000 units, according to the report.
