The Beijing Yizhuang Half-Marathon last week included a new category of participants: humanoid robots. Among them, one robot, Tiangong Ultra, completed the full 21.1-kilometer distanceshowing robotic mobility and endurance in real-world conditions.
The event, organized in Beijing’s Yizhuang district, featured over 12,000 human runners and 21 humanoid robots from a range of Chinese robotics companies. The robot participants competed in a separate lane, with each unit accompanied by human operators responsible for safety and monitoring.
Tiangong Ultra, developed by the Beijing Humanoid Robot Innovation Center, completed the course in 2 hours and 40 minutes. The robot is equipped with an advanced control platform known as “Huisikaiwu,” which integrates perception, decision-making, and locomotion, enabling it to maintain a consistent running pace of 7–8 kilometers per hour. Standing at approximately 1.8 meters tall and weighing 55 kilograms, Tiangong Ultra is designed to emulate human biomechanics using a multi-joint system and dynamic balancing algorithms.
Organizers of the event awarded recognition in categories including completion time, endurance, and audience engagement. Although not all robot entries finished the course—some encountered balance issues or technical failures—the event provided a practical benchmark for testing robotic performance outside of laboratory conditions.
The humanoid robot half-marathon was framed by event planners and participants as an opportunity to assess the operational viability of robotics in complex, dynamic environments. For companies in the robotics and automation sectors, the event offered both a marketing opportunity and a test bed for further research and development.
Tiangong Ultra’s completion of the race suggests that robotic systems are becoming more capable of sustained, semi-autonomous movement. However, human supervision and intervention remain essential, highlighting current limitations in environmental awareness and adaptability.
The Beijing Humanoid Robot Innovation Center has published a press release detailing Tiangong Ultra’s specifications and performance, accompanied by photos from the event. The public demonstration is expected to encourage collaboration among robotics developers, academic institutions, and investors aiming to expand the application scope of humanoid robots.
For companies and stakeholders in automation, logistics, and smart mobility, the event presents new data points in evaluating the readiness of humanoid robots for tasks requiring endurance, navigation, and real-time response to external conditions. While still in a developmental phase, the involvement of robots in such public endurance events reflects growing confidence in their potential roles beyond industrial environments.
Photo: Beijing Municipal Government
