Robot That Zoomed Past Human Marathon Runners in Beijing Improved 2026 Winning Time by Almost 2 Hours
Robot That Zoomed Past Human Marathon Runners in Beijing Improved 2026 Winning Time by Almost 2 Hours
Lexi LaneSat, April 25, 2026 at 11:00 AM UTC
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Lightning during the April 19 race.Credit: Kevin Frayer/Getty -
The robot that won the humanoid half-marathon in Beijing on April 19 finished in 50 minutes and 26 seconds
It marked a major improvement compared to the droid that won in two hours, 40 minutes and 42 seconds in 2025
The winning robot, named "Lightning," was created by Chinese smartphone maker Honor
One of the robots that took part in the humanoid half-marathon in Beijing this month managed to break a real person's previous record — as well as that of another robot.
Beijing E-Town, the area's economic and technological development zone, reported that 40% of the robots ran autonomously, and some were remotely controlled.
The winner, named "Lightning," finished the event on Sunday, April 19, in 50 minutes and 26 seconds, according to the state-run outlet China Daily. The android was created by Chinese smartphone maker Honor.
According to the , the winning robot in last year's competition finished with a time of two hours, 40 minutes and 42 seconds, marking an almost two-hour improvement.
Lightning during the April 19 race.Credit: Zuma
Along the 13-mile race, Lightning — a bright red robot that stands at 5-foot-5, per The New York Times — briefly crashed into a railing and had to be helped back up, according to NBC News.
Honor also had robots secure the second and third place finishes in the race.
“I felt very nervous,” Ma Huaze, captain of one of Honor's winning teams, told NBC News. “The biggest challenge was having the courage to perform and test large-scale upgrades on a major competitive stage like this.”
Along with the robots, around 12,000 humans also ran alongside them. The fastest person in the race was 29-year-old Zhao Haijie, who finished in one hour, 7 minutes and 47 seconds.
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“I felt it was going quite fast,” Zhao told NBC News about his robotic competitor. “It just went whoosh right past me.”
A Ugandan man named Jacob Kiplimo previously held the human record after running the same distance in 57 minutes during a humanoid half marathon race in Lisbon, Portugal, in March.
One spectator, Sun Zhigang, told the Daily Mail he saw "enormous changes this year," adding: "It's the first time robots have surpassed humans, and that's something I never imagined."
Lightning during the April 19 race.Credit: Shi Gangze/Getty
"The robots' speed far exceeds that of humans," another spectator, Wang Wen, told the outlet. "This may signal the arrival of sort of a new era."
Beijing E-Town, the area's economic and technological development zone, reported that 40% of the robots ran autonomously, and some were remotely controlled.
In a statement before the half-marathon, the city of Beijing said the event was "more than just a race."
"It marks a major step forward for the robotics industry — accelerating the transition of humanoid robots from lab to large-scale, real-world application," the people's government said in a statement.
on People
Source: “AOL Sports”
