A humanoid robot runs alongside participants during a long-distance race, breaking the half marathon world record by surpassing human performance potential in Beijing, China, on April 19, 2026. (Photo by Emre Aytekin/Anadolu via Getty Images)
A Chinese technology company proved that if the robots do rise up against us, we're probably not going to be able to outrun them.
Big picture view:
On Sunday, more than 100 humanoid robots tested their running chops in a half-marathon, and the 12,000 humans also in the race proved to be no match for some of them, Reuters reported.
While several of them beat all the human runners, the fastest one crossed the finish line of the 21.1-kilometer circuit in Beijing with a time that topped the world record time set just last month in Lisbon by Jacob Kiplimo of Uganda.
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The backstory:
The performances by the robot runners this year were a massive leap forward compared with last year’s inaugural competition. According to Reuters, there were only around 20 robots entered in that error-filled edition and the fastest one needed two hours and 40 minutes to complete the race.
This year’s frontrunner, built by phone maker Honor, reached the end in just 50 minutes and 26 seconds – or more than 10 minutes faster than the human winners.
Why you should care:
For many involved, the artificial entrants are less about proving they can outrun people than about proving the viability of humanoid robots. However, as the Reuters report indicated, some experts pointed out that running does not necessarily translate into commercial uses, where manual dexterity, real-world perception, and capabilities beyond repetitive tasks are needed.
The Source: Information for this article was taken from Reuters. This story was reported from Orlando.