The performance surpassed the 9.58-second men's 100-metre world record set by Bolt at the World Athletics Championships in Berlin in 2009.
A Chinese humanoid robot (in silver) ran the 100 metre in 9.32 seconds, beating the human world record held by Jamaican sprinting great Usain Bolt. Picture: X/@XHNews
A Chinese humanoid robot ran 100 metres in 9.32 seconds, beating the 9.58-second human world record held by Jamaican sprinting great Usain Bolt.
The robot, dubbed Lightning, reached a peak speed of 14.5 metres (47.6ft) per second during a preparatory test event for the second World Humanoid Robot Games, which opened in Beijing on Saturday.
World record
Tiangong Ultra, developed by the Beijing Humanoid Robot Innovation Centre, outpaced two other China-made robots to win the race at the World Humanoid Robot Games in Beijing,” China’s state broadcaster reported.
The performance surpassed the 9.58-second men’s 100-metre world record set by Bolt at the World Athletics Championships in Berlin in 2009.
China
China is driving humanoid robotics as a strategic industry, betting on AI and hardware breakthroughs to transform manufacturing, logistics, and consumer tech.
Its star prototype, Lightning, stunned observers in April by completing the Beijing half marathon in 50 minutes 26 seconds – faster than elite men’s world‑record pace.
Standing 169cm tall, the robot’s legs have since been lengthened to 1.05m ahead of the World Humanoid Robot Games, with researchers touting it as proof of China’s accelerating robotics ambitions.
Bolt has not yet issued an official public statement or reaction regarding the recent news of Chinese humanoid robots outpacing his 100-metre world record.
World Athletics
In addition to athletics and football events, the Games also introduced new events including weightlifting, tug-of-war, and table tennis, putting the robots’ physical structures and core components to the test.
The Games also expanded scenario-based competitions designed to simulate real-world applications, covering sectors such as logistics, hospitality, and household services to help robots better integrate into people’s daily lives.
Robots
As humanoid robot research and development continues to make breakthroughs, the “Ice Ribbon,” where a world record was set during the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics, is now hosting another showcase of advances in humanoid robotics.
