A half marathon that was originally planned for Sunday and featured humanoid robots competing alongside human runners has been postponed by Beijing. The event is meant to demonstrate China’s progress in a cutting-edge sector that the nation is determined to dominate.
“The event’s organizers announced on Thursday that the 2025 Beijing Yizhuang Half Marathon would now take place on April 19 instead of this weekend due to the forecast of extremely strong winds.
“Experts say that humanoid robots are more likely to topple over in windy conditions because there is a lack of training data for the situation, though they did not specify whether the conditions were more dangerous for human or robot runners.
“The race will take place in a part of Beijing where over 100 robotics companies are based and where the government has allocated 10 billion yuan ($1.36 billion) for their development, according to Li Quan, the deputy director of the management committee for the area.
“The marathon is not just a test of the robots’ physical stamina but also a test of the development teams’ advances in artificial intelligence,” Li stated at a press conference last month.
A slowing economy and rising wages are making robots more appealing to Chinese businesses looking to cut labor costs and use technology to expand. Moreover, China has witnessed a boom in investment in humanoid robots and their industrial uses as a result of the country’s quick adoption of AI and the success of the startup DeepSeek. In the past, humanoid robots have been seen.
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