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Humanoid Robots Beat Usain Bolt's 100m Record in Beijing

Science18 sourcesAug 24, 2026
FlatRigor 4818 sources

The Story

Humanoid robots exceeded human records at the World Robot Games over the weekend in Beijing's Olympic speed skating arena, showcasing China's dominance in the industry. In a preliminary heat on Saturday, Tiangong Ultra, developed by the Beijing Humanoid Robot Innovation Center, ran 100 meters in 9.39 seconds. This time surpassed Usain Bolt's 2009 world record of 9.58 seconds. Another robot, Lightning, from smartphone maker Honor, finished the 100 meters in 9.47 seconds, also faster than Bolt's record. Tiangong Ultra also ran the 400-meter race in 38.16 seconds, beating Wayde van Niekerk's 2016 world record of 43.03 seconds. Lightning won this year's humanoid half-marathon in 50 minutes, 26 seconds, surpassing the elite men's human world record. The World Humanoid Robot Games, in its second edition, features 51 events including football, dancing, and industrial tasks, with 2,056 robots from 16 countries participating. The sprinting bots often slammed into cushioned walls after races; Tiangong stumbled, and Lightning collapsed and was carried away. China promotes humanoid robots as a strategic emerging industry, with policymakers and companies investing in AI and hardware for manufacturing, logistics, and consumer applications. Shares in Unitree, a Chinese humanoid robot maker, jumped over five-fold in its Shanghai trading debut, reaching a market value of about $50 billion.

The Spread

What they agree on

  • Humanoid robots at the World Humanoid Robot Games in Beijing surpassed Usain Bolt's 100-meter world record.
  • Tiangong Ultra, developed by the Beijing Humanoid Robot Innovation Center, ran the 100 meters in 9.39 seconds.
  • Another robot, Lightning, also ran the 100 meters faster than Bolt's 9.58-second record.
  • The games feature various events, including sprinting, jumping, football, and boxing.
  • The event highlights advancements in bipedal robot technology and China's focus on the humanoid robot industry.

Where they split

  • The Verge (article 2) and Daily Sabah (article 3) provide specific details about the robots' post-race behavior, noting they collide into cushioned walls and are carried away on stretchers, which is less emphasized in other reports.
  • Daily Sabah (article 3) and The Verge (article 2) include information about Lightning's preparatory test time of 9.32 seconds and its physical modifications (leg lengthening), which other outlets do not detail.
  • Euronews (article 1) and France 24 (article 1) broadly state that robots exceeded human records, while other outlets like The Verge (article 2) and Daily Sabah (article 3) provide specific times for both Tiangong Ultra and Lightning.
  • The Mainichi (English) (article 6) and Greater Kashmir (article 13) mention high jump records being broken by Chinese humanoid robots, a detail not present in most other articles which focus solely on sprinting.

Source Perspectives

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