Robots join thousands of runners in Beijing’s futuristic half marathon: Video
On Saturday, April 19, dozens of humanoid robots participated in a half marathon for the first time, running alongside thousands of human participants in Beijing.
The 21-kilometre (13-mile) event took place in E-Town, a government-supported hub for high-tech manufacturing in the Chinese capital.
The event aimed to evaluate the capabilities of bipedal robots under real-world conditions. While human runners stayed on one side of the road, many took out their mobile phones to film the robots pacing towards the finish line. Some robots ran autonomously, while others were operated remotely by engineers.
According to engineers who spoke with AFP, the primary objective was not to compete for speed but to assess the robots' performance, stability, and reliability.
“The main purpose of doing this is to prepare for the industrialisation in the future or the near future, because when we land in factories, businesses or life scenes, we expect this robot to work continuously 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and without failure… Our marathon is actually an extreme test of reliability and stability. Next time, I think you will see it more perfect,” one engineer told AFP.
The event featured around 20 teams from across China. Participating robots ranged in height from 75 to 180 centimetres (2.46 to 5.9 feet) and weighed up to 88 kilograms (194 pounds).
