Humanoid robots stride into future with world’s first half-marathon

In a spectacle blending science fiction and sport, dozens of humanoid robots joined thousands of human participants in a historic half-marathon on Saturday in Beijing — marking the world’s first race of its kind.

The 21-kilometre event took place in the Chinese capital’s E-Town district, a government-supported hub for advanced technology and high-end manufacturing. It served as a bold demonstration of China’s ambition to lead in robotics and artificial intelligence.

As the race began to the tune of the Chinese pop anthem “I Believe,” humanoid robots lined up and began moving forward in careful, mechanical strides. Curious human runners on a parallel track captured the moment on their phones, cheering as the machines took their first steps.

One smaller robot, which toppled over and lay motionless for minutes, eventually rose on its own, drawing applause from spectators. Another, styled like a Transformer and equipped with propellers, veered off course, crashed into a barrier, and knocked down an engineer.

Roughly 20 teams from across China competed in the event, with robots ranging from 75 to 180 centimeters in height and weighing up to 88 kilograms. While some robots moved autonomously, others were operated remotely by engineers. Both robots and humans ran along separate tracks.

Engineers said the goal was not to crown the fastest machine, but to test the limits of bipedal robots in real-world conditions — assessing their balance, endurance, and navigational capabilities.

The event highlights China’s growing push to outpace global competitors in frontier tech. Earlier this year, Chinese start-up DeepSeek made headlines with a homegrown chatbot it claimed was developed at a fraction of the cost of Western counterparts. Humanoid robots also stole the show during China’s televised Lunar New Year celebration.