China’s Humanoid Marathon Signals a New Kind of AI Race

China's robots race against humans — and their U.S. counterparts

Twenty-one humanoid robots competed alongside people in a half-marathon in Beijing, stoking national pride in China amid its intensifying tech rivalry with the U.S.

The Chinese government is further promoting the development of artificial intelligence and robots this year as it seeks to boost its economy and face growing technological rivalry with the United States.

For a human animal developed in chronic energy poverty, the waste of energy and time that comes with sport paradoxically generates despair. Based on the latest research, it seems that people also want to offer this to their hitherto soulless tools, states Kristjan Port in the R2 tech commentary.

Humanoid Robots Stumble Forward in Half-Marathon Showcase

Welcome to Tech In Depth, our daily newsletter with reporting and analysis about the business of tech from Bloomberg’s journalists around the world. Today, Saritha Rai reports on the future of humanoid robots after their participation in a half-marathon last week in China.

China’s humanoid robot half-marathon puts technology’s limits on public display

Videos of robots falling, trembling and struggling to stay upright circulated widely, with only six out of 21 finishing the race.

Embodied A.I. Deployment in China Races Ahead

On Saturday, Beijing hosted the world’s first half-marathon in which humans competed alongside humanoid robots. Among the 21 robots to compete, six completed the race, and the winning robot required several battery changes to reach the finish line in two hours and 40 minutes, well behind the winner of the men’s race who finished in one hour and two minutes. Nonetheless, the groundbreaking event received glowing reports in Chinese media, and as A…