Ahead of the humanoid (human-shaped robot) half marathon to be held in Beijing on Apr. 19, there is an outlook that the winning time could approach the human world record. In just a year, comprehensive upgrades to humanoid hardware and algorithm systems have greatly improved running speed and control. This event will also fully introduce Autonomous Driving, and is expected to serve as a stage to comprehensively verify humanoids' decision-making and precision control capabilities.
According to China Business News and the state-run Global Times on the 23rd, the Beijing Yizhuang Economic-Technological Development Area held the first joint practice for participating teams on the 14th–15th. More than 20 teams from universities and corporations across regions will take part in this event. The course includes not only flat sections but also gravel roads, grass, slopes, and uneven segments to create diverse environments.
The joint practice also included Tiangong (天工) from the Beijing Humanoid Robot Innovation Center (hereafter the Innovation Center), the winning model from last year's competition. Tiangong won last year in 2 hours, 40 minutes, 42 seconds, showing performance on par with human amateur athletes. Tiangong's top speed at the time was 6 km per hour, but it is now reported to have risen to 12 km per hour, double that.
Not only Tiangong but other participating models have achieved notable speed gains, raising expectations that this event could produce a time close to the human world record. Tang Jian, chief technology officer (CTO) of the Innovation Center, said in an interview with China Business News, "In this preliminary test, some competitive teams set a goal to challenge the 'human champion record (57 minutes, 20 seconds),'" adding, "Around 'within 1 hour' has become the goal for each team."
Earlier, Unitree founder Wang Xingxing also said at a recent forum, "By around the middle of this year, humanoid robots worldwide, especially in China, will run faster than humans," adding, "The 100-meter dash could be under 10 seconds, possibly faster than Usain Bolt."
Behind these speed gains are simultaneous improvements in humanoid hardware and algorithms. CTO Tang said that this year the output and explosive power of robot joints have been strengthened, and the application of new cooling technology allows stability to be maintained even during long periods of high-intensity running. On the algorithm side, the motion control system has been improved so that gait patterns are closer to those of humans, and both energy efficiency and running efficiency have increased. Some models are said to have maximized battery efficiency to the point where development has progressed to completing a half marathon on a single battery.
Another focal point of this event is Autonomous Driving. Last year, remotely controlled robots and Autonomous Driving robots competed together, but this year a separate Autonomous Driving institutional sector has been established. Robots in this sector must perceive the environment on their own based on electronic maps, set routes, and make real-time judgments while running. The Yizhuang side said the purpose of this event is "to evaluate robots' autonomous mobility in real urban environments." It will verify core functions such as environment perception, route exploration, real-time decision-making, and precision control.
China Business News analyzed that "the shift from 'human-led mode' to 'full Autonomous Driving' ultimately tests humanoids' perception in diverse environments and their real-time decision-making ability, and technically has a structure very similar to autonomous vehicles."