A “robot” precedes humans in the Beijing Half Marathon… and falls meters before the end! (video)

A humanoid robot competing with runners broke the world record in a half marathon held in Beijing on Sunday, an indication of the rapid technological progress achieved by Chinese manufacturers.
Spectators lined both sides of the road in Beichuang, south of the capital, to watch the machines and their human opponents race, with a separate lane allocated to each category to avoid accidents or collisions.

🔴 This Chinese humanoid robot broke the world record for the half marathon, recording a time of 50 minutes and 26 seconds.

This video shows the moment he fell just meters before the finish line, and a human team had to dig him out.
The robot is produced by Honor, the smartphone manufacturer… pic.twitter.com/k4RzIqqzHu

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The agility of some robots that reminded them of famous runners such as Jamaican Usain Bolt caught attention, while others were simpler.
The half marathon was won by a robot equipped with an autonomous navigation system, representing the Chinese smartphone company Honor. He covered the race distance of about 21 kilometers in 50 minutes and 26 seconds at an average speed of 25 km/hour, according to the state-run CCTV channel.
This time was faster than any human runner achieved on Sunday, and broke the men’s half-marathon world record of 57 minutes and 20 seconds, held by Ugandan runner Jacob Kipelmo.
This achievement represents amazing progress compared to last year, when human-like robots were falling and stumbling during the race, and the best of them needed more than two hours and forty minutes to finish the race.
According to organizers, participation in humanoid robots jumped from about 20 last year to more than 100 this year, indicating the growing popularity of this sector.

Robots ‘beginning to overtake us’
Han Zhenyu, a 25-year-old student who watched the race from behind a safety barrier, said the robot was so fast that she could barely hold her phone and take a photo of it as it ran close to her.
She expressed to Agence France-Presse her enthusiasm for this technological development. She thought that the marathon was “very wonderful,” adding, “But as I work to earn my living, I feel a little anxious sometimes. I feel that technology is developing so quickly that it may begin to affect jobs.”
Human-like robots have become a common sight in China in recent years, both in the media and in public spaces.
Xie Li, 41, who watched Sunday’s race with his family, predicted that robots will become “part of our daily lives” within years, and may be used for “things like housework, accompanying the elderly or providing basic care” or even in “dangerous jobs such as firefighting.”
The race aims to encourage innovation and disseminate the technologies used in designing and operating these robots. The volume of investment in these machines and what is known as embodied artificial intelligence will reach 73.5 billion yuan ($10.8 billion) in China in 2025, according to a study prepared by a government body.
“For thousands of years, humans have been at the top on planet Earth,” Shih told AFP. “But now look at robots. At least in terms of autonomous navigation, and in this particular sporting event, they are already beginning to overtake us.”