China Robot’s 50-Minute Half Marathon Shows Pace of AI Progress
A humanoid robot runs during the Beijing E-Town Half Marathon and Humanoid Half Marathon on April 19.
Photographer: Kevin Frayer/Getty ImagesOn Sunday morning in a Beijing suburb, a red, humanoid robot completed a half-marathon in 50 minutes and 26 seconds — about seven minutes faster than the men’s world record.
The second annual robot half marathon — with machines running alongside human racers — wasn’t just tech gimmickry. It showed rapid advances in artificial intelligence that could allow such machines to gain the physical skills and dexterity to take on a range of tasks more rapidly than anticipated.