Chinese humanoid robots broke records set by humans, including beating Usain Bolt’s 100-meter sprint world record, on the opening day of the Olympics-like World Humanoid Robot Games in Beijing on Saturday, according to organizers and reports. More than 2,000 humanoid robots are participating in the five-day event, which is now in its second year and is being held in the National Speed Skating Oval built for the 2022 Winter Olympics.
Humanoid Robots Shatter Records at Beijing Games
During the opening day’s 100-meter preliminary races, a robot from the Tianzhuo Team clocked a time of 9.39 seconds, surpassing the human world record of 9.58 seconds set by Jamaican athlete Usain Bolt in 2009, as reported by UDN. Additionally, a humanoid robot named “Lightning,” developed by Chinese smartphone manufacturer Honor, completed a 100-meter sprint in a record 9.32 seconds during a trial event, reaching a peak speed of 14.5 meters per second, according to The Guardian. Lightning had previously won the Beijing half marathon in April in 50 minutes and 26 seconds, and researchers lengthened its legs by 10 centimeters for these games.
Expanding Scale and Athletic Competitions
The games have grown significantly since their inaugural event. The competition features 51 events and more than 1,000 competitions, up from 26 events previously. Participating teams increased by 138% to 666 teams, bringing a total of 2,056 robots from 16 countries—including the United States, Germany, and Japan—to compete in events such as running, table tennis, soccer, weightlifting, and tug of war.
In the standing high jump event, a “Tengong Ultra” robot from Beijing-based X-Humanoid reached 2.88 meters (or 2.8843 meters as cited in regional reports), surpassing the human male record of 2.45 meters set by Cuba’s Javier Sotomayor in 1993, as well as significantly outperforming the 0.95-meter best result achieved by a humanoid in the first edition of the games. However, competitive mishaps also occurred; during a 400-meter preliminary heat, two humanoid robots fell in a curve, generating friction sparks that drew gasps from the audience.
Broader Industry Context and Geopolitical Tensions
The event serves as a showcase for China’s rapid progress in advanced robotics amid an ongoing technology race with the United States. China produces the majority of the world’s humanoid robots, and policymakers are banking on artificial intelligence and hardware advances to accelerate deployment in manufacturing, logistics, and consumer applications.
At the same time, international scrutiny has intensified. Last month, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission announced a ban on imports of new foreign-made humanoid robots, citing national security reasons in a move targeting China. Additionally, the Pentagon added Unitree, a leading Chinese humanoid robot maker, to its list of companies deemed to have ties with the Chinese military—accusations that Beijing has rejected.
Expert Outlook and Spectator Reactions
Despite the record-breaking athletic feats, industry experts emphasize that humanoid robots are currently used mostly for demonstrations, performances, and research, and achieving mass real-world deployment will take time. Organizers and participants nevertheless highlighted the broader societal themes of the exhibition, featuring opening events like a synchronized formation march and human-robot interactive displays involving table tennis gold medalist Ding Ning, tennis player Zheng Jie, and soccer player Yang Chen.
Spectators at the venue expressed a mix of awe and shifting perspectives toward artificial intelligence. Li Yanfeng, an education worker and Beijing resident, said that at first, they were not very accepting of artificial intelligence and were even a bit resistant to it due to the possibility that it might replace or displace humans, but now that they see this development is unstoppable, they decided to come and take a look. Another spectator, Yang Shangzheng, added that these sports are perfectly normal for humans, but now robots can do them, which they find amazing.
