A humanoid robot that won a robot half-marathon in Beijing on Sunday outpaced the human world record, highlighting China’s rapid technological advances.
According to a WeChat post from the Beijing Economic-Technological Development Area (Beijing E-Town), the winning robot—developed by Chinese smartphone maker Honor—finished the 21-kilometer (13-mile) race in 50 minutes and 26 seconds.
That time beat the human world record set by Uganda’s Jacob Kiplimo, who completed the same distance in roughly 57 minutes at a Lisbon road race in March.
Robot Marathon Shows Major Progress Despite Early Setbacks
The robot’s performance represented a major improvement over last year’s inaugural event, when the fastest machine took 2 hours, 40 minutes, and 42 seconds to finish.
Still, the competition—held alongside a human race—had its challenges, with one robot collapsing at the starting line and another crashing into a barrier.
Du Xiaodi, a test development engineer at Honor, said the team was pleased with the outcome. He explained that the robot’s design drew inspiration from elite human athletes, featuring long legs of about 95 cm (around 37 inches) and a robust, largely in-house liquid-cooling system.
He added that some of these technologies could eventually be adapted for other uses, such as applying structural durability and liquid-cooling solutions in future industrial settings.
Although widespread commercialization of humanoid robots is still some way off, the machines have already made an impression on spectators. Sun Zhigang, who attended last year’s event, returned to watch Sunday’s race with his son.
Sun said he has noticed dramatic progress this year, adding that it was the first time robots had outperformed humans—something he never thought possible.
Robots Steal the Spotlight as Autonomous Systems Show Growing Capability
Wang Wen, who attended with his family, said the robots appeared to draw much of the attention away from human runners at the event.
“The robots are far faster than humans,” he said, adding that it could mark the beginning of a new era.
Beijing E-Town reported that about 40% of the robots completed the course autonomously, while operators remotely controlled the remaining ones.
State media outlet Global Times noted that a separate remotely controlled robot from Honor crossed the finish line first in 48 minutes and 19 seconds. However, organizers awarded the title based on the event’s weighted scoring system, even though the official winner used autonomous navigation.
State broadcaster CCTV said the runners-up—also from Honor and operating autonomously—completed the race in roughly 51 and 53 minutes, respectively. It added that a robot even acted as a traffic officer, guiding participants with arm signals and voice commands.
China Positions Robotics as Key Front in Tech Competition with the U.S.
In China, technology has become a key arena of competition with the United States, carrying national security implications. Beijing’s latest five-year plan pledges to push the frontiers of science and technology, with accelerated development of products like humanoid robots and their applications forming part of its 2026–2030 strategy for the world’s second-largest economy.
The London-based research and advisory firm Omdia recently identified three Chinese companies—AGIBOT, Unitree Robotics, and UBTech Robotics Corp.—as the only top-tier vendors worldwide in terms of shipments of general-purpose embodied intelligent robots.
According to the report, each of these companies delivered more than 1,000 units last year, with AGIBOT and Unitree Robotics exceeding 5,000 units each.
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