Humanoid robots stride into the longer term with world’s first half-marathon

Step by mechanical step, dozens of humanoid robots took to the streets of Beijing early Saturday, becoming a member of hundreds of their flesh-and-blood counterparts in a world-first half marathon showcasing China’s drive to guide the worldwide race in cutting-edge expertise.

The 21-kilometer (13-mile) occasion held within the Chinese language capital’s E-City—a state-backed hub for high-tech manufacturing—is billed as a groundbreaking effort to check the boundaries of bipedal robots in real-world circumstances.

On the crack of the starter’s gun, and as a Chinese language pop music “I Consider” blared out from loudspeakers on repeat, the robots queued up one after the other and took their first tentative steps.

Curious human runners lined up on their aspect of the highway and waited patiently with cell phones on the able to shoot every machine as they ready to depart.

One smaller-sized android, which fell over and lay on the bottom for a number of minutes, bought up by itself to loud cheers.

One other, powered by propellers and designed to appear to be a Transformer, veered throughout the beginning line earlier than crashing right into a barrier and knocking over an engineer.

“Getting onto the race observe would possibly seem to be a small step for people, nevertheless it’s an enormous leap for humanoid robots,” Liang Liang, Beijing E-City’s administration committee deputy director, instructed AFP earlier than the occasion. Close by, engineers jogged alongside their machines.

“The marathon helps push humanoid robots one step nearer towards industrialization.”

Tech race

Round 20 groups from throughout China are collaborating within the competitors—with robots starting from 75 to 180 centimeters (2.46 to five.9 ft) tall and weighing as much as 88 kilograms (194 kilos).

Some are operating autonomously, whereas others are guided remotely by engineers, with machines and people operating on separate tracks.

Engineers instructed AFP the purpose was to check the efficiency and reliability of the androids—emphasizing that ending the race, not successful it, was the primary goal.

“I feel it is a huge enhance for all the robotics trade,” Cui Wenhao, a 28-year-old engineer at Noetix Robotics, mentioned of the half-marathon.

“Actually, there are only a few alternatives for the entire trade to run at full velocity over such an extended distance or period. It is a critical check for the battery, the motors, the construction—even the algorithms.”

Cui mentioned as a part of its coaching, a humanoid robotic had been operating a half-marathon day by day, at a tempo of about seven minutes per kilometer, and he anticipated it to finish the race with no points.

“However simply in case, we have additionally ready a backup robotic,” he added.

One other younger engineer, 25-year-old Kong Yichang from DroidUp, mentioned the race would assist to “lay a basis for an entire sequence of future actions involving humanoid robots”.

“The importance (of the race) lies in the truth that humanoid robots can really combine into human society and start doing issues that people do.”

China, the world’s second-largest economic system, has sought to claim its dominance within the fields of AI and robotics, positioning itself as a direct challenger to the USA.

In January, Chinese language start-up DeepSeek drew consideration with a chatbot it claimed was developed extra cost-effectively than its American counterparts.

Dancing humanoid robots additionally captivated audiences throughout a televised Chinese language New 12 months gala.

© 2025 AFP