Faster than Usain Bolt: The five-day robot Olympics putting humanoid autonomy to the test

Humanoid robots are racing, lifting, throwing and even playing tennis in Beijing this week, as China puts its rapidly advancing robotics industry through its paces.

The five-day World Humanoid Robot Games bring together more than 50 events, from traditional sports such as the 100-metre sprint and tug-of-war to challenges modelled on factory floors, restaurants, offices and emergency scenes.

But behind the spectacle and record-breaking times, the real competition is less about how fast a robot can run than how well it can cope when things go wrong.

Organisers are testing whether machines can see, think and respond to the messy unpredictability of the real world, and whether they can eventually perform useful work without a human stepping in.

The games, heavily promoted in Chinese state media, feature 51 events, including 30 sports competitions and 21 scenario-based contests.

More than 40 per cent of the events require robots to operate fully autonomously, according to Huawei, a tech partner of the games.

Intensity 'higher than ever'

The event is in its second year, and some robots are already outperforming the 2025 results.

On Saturday, two robots ran faster than Usain Bolt's 9.58-second world record in the 100-meter sprint. That was a sharp improvement from 2025, when the winning robot's time was more than 20 seconds.

Braking was an issue, as the machines slammed into a thick mat that organisers placed several metres after the finish line.

Another humanoid, the same model as the 100-meter champion, ran 400 metres in 39.7 seconds, faster than South African Wayde van Niekerk's world record of 43.03 seconds.

"The intensity is higher than last year, which places significant demands on the robot's battery management and thermal dissipation capabilities," said spectator and robotics investor Xu Qiaosheng.

"It holds huge significance for the development of China's industrial sector."

Robots will compete in tug-of-war and weightlifting, while Tai Chi and pitch-pot — in which contestants throw arrow-like sticks into a narrow-necked vase — will give traditional Chinese sports a futuristic twist.

Can robots problem solve?

Beyond the spectacle, the more revealing tests could come when robots encounter the small imperfections of the physical world: a cable at the wrong angle, an object just out of reach, a shifting package or a missed step.

That tests whether robots can identify objects, accurately position their hands and bodies, apply controlled force and recover from errors without human intervention.

Lumos Robotics Chief Executive Yu Chao said the games could help improve hardware and provide a showcase for the industry. But Yu said the longer-term value will depend on real-world problem solving.

"Only when it can work in those end scenarios does it have real value. Simply running and jumping does not improve efficiency," he added.

In addition to more familiar events drawn from human sports, robots will compete in EV charging, restaurant work, emergency incident handling and hand-dexterity contests.

There are also industrial assembly and material loading events. A cable connection challenge is a test of vision, mechanical alignment and force control.

Beijing-based robotics startup Galbot said it would stage an autonomous humanoid tennis match, with robots competing in singles and doubles, including ball tracking, serving, and returning shots.

For Hua Rong, chief marketing officer at robotics firm Zeroth, the real test will come after the demonstrations end.

"The competition will be whether, after the product is sold, it can really solve users' problems," she said.

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