It's humans vs humanoids in China's 21 km half-marathon race. Who won?

Twenty-one humanoid robots joined thousands of humans to participate in the Yizhuang half-marathon in Beijing on Saturday. This was the first time robots raced against humans in a 21 km course. According to The Straits Times, the robots came from Chinese manufacturers such as Droidvp and Noetix Robotics.

They came in all shapes and sizes, some were shorter than 1.2m, others as tall as 1.8m. One of the companies, which took part in the race, boasted that its robot looked almost like a human with feminine features and could wink and smile. Some firms were testing these robots for weeks before they took part in the race.

“The robots are running very well, very stable … I feel I’m witnessing the evolution of robots and AI,” said spectator He Sishu, who works in artificial intelligence. The robots were accompanied by human trainers who had to physically support the machines during the race.

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So who won?

The robot, which won the race, was Tiangong Ultra, from the Beijing Innovation Centre of Human Robotics. It took the robot 2 hours and 40 minutes to complete the 21 km race course. Meanwhile, the men’s winner of the race registered a 1 hour 2 minutes.

It is pertinent to note that 43% of the Beijing Innovation Centre of Human Robotics is owned by two state-owned enterprises, while tech giant Xiaomi’s robotics arm and leading Chinese humanoid robot firm UBTech have an equal share in the rest.

“I don’t want to boast, but no other robotics firms in the West have matched Tiangong’s sporting achievements,” Tang Jian, chief technology officer of the robotics centre, said after Tiangong won the race. He mentioned that the robot’s batteries were switched three times during the race.

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While humanoid robots have made appearances at marathons in China over the past year, this was the first time they raced against humans. The country is now hoping to incorporate these robots in frontier industries. However, some analysts question whether having robots enter marathons is a reliable indicator of their industrial potential.

With inputs from agencies.