And they looked absolutely ridiculous doing it.
Usain Bolt’s 2009 world record for the 100-meter dash still remains unbroken at 9.58 seconds, but only if we’re talking about humans. During the second annual World Humanoid Robot Games that kicked off in Beijing on Saturday, the Tiangong Ultra humanoid robot completed the 100-meter dash in 9.39 seconds during a preliminary heat. Developed by Beijing Humanoid Robot Innovation Center, the record-holding robot overtook Honor’s Lightning robot, which completed the sprint in 9.47 seconds.
Despite the impressive finish times, don’t expect these humanoid robots to be used for any commercial purposes yet. After their sprints, they slammed directly into pads and some even required human assistance to be stretchered off the course. However, it’s still a major improvement from last year’s inaugural World Humanoid Robot Games, where the Tiangong Ultra won the 100-meter dash in 21.5 seconds.
Aside from this Robot Olympics event, Beijing hosted a half-marathon for Chinese companies to show off the capabilities of their humanoid robots. The event had its fair share of crashes too, but Honor’s Lightning robot managed to secure the gold medal with a finish time of 50 minutes and 26 seconds, which also surpassed another human record. The World Humanoid Robot Games in Beijing kicked off August 22 and will run until the 26, hosting thousands of robot participants competing in more than just track and field events, including soccer, table tennis and boxing.