The winning robot, developed by Chinese smartphone maker Honor, completed the 21-kilometer race in 50 minutes and 26 seconds, according to a statement on the WeChat account of the Beijing Economic and Technological Development Zone, also known as Beijing E-Town, where the race started.
That's faster even than the time set by the human world record holder, Ugandan Jacob Kiplimo, who ran the same distance in about 57 minutes in a street race in Lisbon in March.
This result represents a huge improvement over last year's inaugural race, when the winning robot took 2 hours, 40 minutes and 42 seconds to cross the finish line.
However, the race was not without minor mishaps, with one robot crashing at the starting line, while another crashed into a guardrail.
Beijing E-Town stated that about 40 percent of the robots moved along the track completely autonomously, while the rest were remotely controlled.
State-run Global Times reported that another Honor robot, which was remotely controlled, crossed the finish line first with a time of 48 minutes and 19 seconds. However, the title of champion went to the robot that relied on autonomous navigation, and the winner was declared based on a weighted scoring system in the competition.
State broadcaster CCTV reported that the second- and third-place robots, also from Honor and equipped with an autonomous navigation system, completed the race in approximately 51 and 53 minutes, respectively. Interestingly, one robot took on the role of a traffic policeman, directing participants with hand gestures and voice commands, CCTV added.
China’s technological development has become a kind of arena for competition with the United States, with significant implications for national security. Beijing’s latest five-year plan clearly outlines its ambition to “push the boundaries of science and technology.” Accelerating the development of products such as humanoid robots and their wider application is a key part of the world’s second-largest economy’s strategy for the period 2026-2030.
London-based technology, research and advisory group Omdia recently ranked three Chinese companies, AGIBOT, Unitree Robotics and UBTech Robotics Corp; as the only first-class suppliers in the world in its global assessment of general-purpose intelligent robot shipments.
According to their report, each of these companies shipped more than 1,000 robot units last year, while the first two companies listed shipped more than 5,000 units.
