Humans and robots will compete side by side in a 21-kilometer half-marathon in Beijing's Daxing district.
The race will feature 12,000 human participants and over 20 humanoid robots, which makes it the first of its kind.
Organized by the Beijing Economic-Technological Development Area (E-Town), the event is designed to showcase advancements in robotics and artificial intelligence (AI) while promoting innovation in these fields.
Did you know?
Subscribe - We publish new crypto explainer videos every week!
Crypto Day Trading VS Swapping: What’s More Rewarding? (Animated)
To participate, robots must meet specific requirements. They must resemble humans in appearance, use bipedal motion, and be between 0.5 and 2 meters tall.
Wheeled robots are strictly prohibited, ensuring that all they mimic human running or walking. Batteries can be replaced during the race to allow robots to complete the course, and both remote-controlled and fully autonomous models are permitted to compete.
Robots from various companies and research groups are expected to join. Among them is Tiangong, capable of running at 10 km/h, developed by the Embodied Artificial Intelligence Robotics Innovation Center in China.
Other notable competitors include the Tesla Optimus Gen-2, which reaches a speed of 8 km/h, and Boston Dynamics' Atlas, clocking in at 9 km/h. The fastest contender might be the OpenAI-backed 1X NEO, with a theoretical speed of 12 km/h.
As Beijing prepares for its human-robot marathon, Maserati, the Italian luxury vehicle manufacturer, recently introduced the MC20, which combines AI and high performance, at the Consumer Electronic Show (CES) 2025. How did the MC20 stand out? Read the full story.
