Human runners dominated the world’s first half-marathon challenge against humanoid robots in Beijing’s Yizhuang district. Despite some robots collapsing at the starting line and veering off course, thousands of runners easily outpaced their mechanical rivals.
The robots, developed by firms like DroidVP and Noetix Robotics, were assisted by teams of engineers and some even required physical support to finish the race. The fastest robot, Tiangong Ultra, completed the course in 2 hours and 40 minutes, while the men’s winner finished more than an hour earlier.
Although the robots were not autonomous athletes and struggled to keep up with humans, some spectators like AI engineer He Sishu found the event to be an exciting showcase of technology and artificial intelligence. However, robotics professor Alan Fern noted that the robots’ performance did not demonstrate any significant advancements in useful work or basic intelligence.
Looking ahead, Tang Jian, CTO at Tiangong’s lab, mentioned plans to shift the focus of humanoid robots towards industrial applications in factories, business scenarios, and eventually households. Overall, the race was seen as an interesting demonstration of robot capabilities, but highlighted the current limitations of humanoid robots compared to human athletes in marathon events.
Note: The image is for illustrative purposes only and is not the original image associated with the presented article. Due to copyright reasons, we are unable to use the original images. However, you can still enjoy the accurate and up-to-date content and information provided.
