Robots Hit the Pavement: Beijing’s Half-Marathon Gets Futuristic
Beijing witnessed a world-first as humanoid robots race humans in half-marathon officially joined humans in a high-stakes half-marathon.
In the Yizhuang district, 21 intelligent machines lined up for a true endurance test: a 21-kilometre race across slopes, curves, and uneven terrain.
- Built by Chinese tech giants, the robots weren’t there for a demo—they were racing for real.
- Some handled the course with surprising agility, while others stumbled—one even toppled right at the start and took several minutes to recover.
- This wasn’t just a tech stunt. It marked the first time robots officially competed with humans in such a long-distance event.
Why it matters: This race wasn’t about winners or medals—it was about pushing robotics beyond labs and into human-level challenges. China’s experiment showed that machines are getting closer to mastering real-world movement, one stride at a time.
