Humanoid Robot Shatters Human Half-Marathon Record

Daily Beast Daily Beast

BEIJING, CHINA - APRIL 19: The fastest humanoid robot, an H1made by Honor, runs beside human runners at the start on its way to winning the Beijing Humanoid Half Marathon on April 19, 2026 in Beijing, China.</p><p>The robot finished with a net time of 50 minutes and 26 seconds.</p><p>More than 100 humanoid robots from 76 institutions across China lined up alongside 12,000 human runners Sunday in Beijing's E-Town district for the world's largest humanoid robot half-marathon, following the same 21-kilometre course on separate lanes in a 'human-robot co-running' format that for the first time included teams competing under fully autonomous navigation. (Photo by Kevin Frayer/Getty Images)https://thedailybeast-thedailybeast-prod.web.arc-cdn.net/resizer/v2/QSPSS5U4KZDBPD7GIXWQJGF7OE.jpg?auth=a1f13a5c9298960d747a7f3b298ce1d0ce34605e743820564645c64c1a3af2fe&smart=true&width=6958&height=3914" />
Kevin Frayer / Getty Images

A humanoid robot has shattered the human half-marathon record.

On Sunday, Lightning, a running robot created by Chinese smartphone maker Honor, finished the 13-mile race in just 50 minutes and 26 seconds.

Ugandan runner Jacob Kiplimo holds the human record of 57 minutes and 20 seconds.

More than 100 humanoid robots from 76 institutions across China lined up alongside 12,000 human runners, following the same course on separate lanes in a ‘human-robot co-running’ format.

The human winners of the men’s and women’s races crossed the finish line after more than an hour.

Dystopian video footage from Beijing on Sunday showed the 169cm tall bot swinging its short arms as it charged to victory.

Last year’s installment saw the fastest bot finish after 2 hours, 40 minutes, and 42 seconds.

The Chinese capital last year also hosted the world’s first Humanoid Robot Games.

In bizarre scenes, bots challenged one another in soccer, boxing, martial arts, and other sports.

It comes after another robot was caught on camera showcasing its running skills.

However, Polish bot Edward Warchocki was https://www.thedailybeast.com/humanoid-robot-spotted-chasing-wild-animals-through-warsaw-poland/" rel="" target="_self" title="https://www.thedailybeast.com/humanoid-robot-spotted-chasing-wild-animals-through-warsaw-poland/">chasing wild boar out of an urban area in Warsaw. “I’m herding the wild boars into the forest,” the robot’s social media account wrote.

https://edition.cnn.com/2026/04/19/china/china-robot-half-marathon-intl-hnk">Read it at CNN

https://www.thedailybeast.com/humanoid-robot-shatters-human-half-marathon-record/">Read more at The Daily Beast.

Read full article at Daily Beast →