Posted on 08/22/2026 10:54:04 AM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin
BEIJING — Chinese humanoid robots broke records set by humans, including beating Usain Bolt’s 100-meter sprint world record, on the opening day of the Olympics-like World Humanoid Robot Games in Beijing on Saturday.
More than 2,000 humanoid robots were participating in the event, the organizer said.
The five-day games, now in its second year, are a spectacle demonstrating China’s rapid progress in advanced robotics as the technology race with the U.S. heats up, with 51 events and more than 1,000 competitions taking place including running, table tennis and soccer.
The games, which are taking place in the National Speed Skating Oval built for the 2022 Winter Olympics, opened the same week as Beijing held the 2026 World Robot Conference, where companies showcased around 3,000 products, including humanoid robots.
China makes the majority of the world’s humanoid robots. The U.S. has stepped up scrutiny of robots from the country.
Last month, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission announced a ban on imports of new foreign-made humanoid robots. The FCC cited national security reasons in a move that targeted China. The Pentagon recently also added Unitree, one of China’s leading humanoid robot makers, to its list of companies that it deemed have ties with the Chinese military. Beijing has hit back at the accusations.
(Excerpt) Read more at nbcnews.com ...
Dear FRiends,
We need your continuing support to keep FR funded. Your donations are our sole source of funding. No sugar daddies, no advertisers, no paid memberships, no commercial sales, no gimmicks, no tax subsidies. No spam, no pop-ups, no ad trackers.
If you enjoy using FR and agree it's a worthwhile endeavor, please consider making a contribution today:
Click here: to donate by Credit Card
Or here: to donate by PayPal
Or by mail to: Free Republic, LLC - PO Box 9771 - Fresno, CA 93794
Thank you very much and God bless you,
Jim
That’s the thing about China. Once they think they have a decided advantage, watch out - mutually assured destruction notwithstanding. Or if they feel their back is against the wall like the Empire of Japan in 1941.
No 'bot gonna look like dat...
Was this event where the robot missed a turn, ran straight into a wall, and broke in half...?
My Subaru can go fast than Bolt.
Just wait til they demand to compete against human males.
******************
They won’t demand it, but a race between these machines and humans will happen.
Unfortunately, these robots that set a record in a short sprint aren’t good for much else. At the end of the race the top two robots crashed into a barrier & were carried off the track on stretchers by human beings.
I guess you miss the point they don’t work.
It’s hype. Propaganda and investment scam.
And I’m not saying absolutely everything done in China in AI/Robotics is crap.
I agree, Frank. I am 66 this year and I have seriously HAD IT with so many things in this world!
I want Mother Government and ALL of China to leave me the h#ll alone and let me grow tomatoes, raise puppies, mow the house yard, raise a beef steer and chickens, bake bread, sew, crochet, create, read my Bible, watch OLD movies, etc.
Enough, already! I hope these people wanting EVERY LIVING THING ‘automated’ can cozy up to their robots at night, LOL!
“Come to find out it’s a Leg race.”
More like the old Potato Sack Race, LOL!
“...human servants.”
I’m convinced that’s the End Game. ;)
If it gets to that point they won’t need human servants.
If it gets to that point they won’t need human servants.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.