Unitree’s H1 Robot Wins 1,500-Metre Race at World’s First Humanoid Games in China
China launched the world’s first humanoid robot games in Beijing, where Unitree Robotics’ H1 robot claimed victory in a 1,500-metre race.
The event, officially named the World Humanoid Robot Games, began Thursday and runs through Sunday. It features more than 500 humanoid robots from 280 teams across 16 countries, including Japan, Germany and the United States.
Unitree, based in Hangzhou, secured both first and third places in the opening race with its H1 model. The second-place finisher was the Tien Kung Ultra from Beijing-based X-Humanoid, which previously won a half-marathon involving both humans and robots in April.
The H1 robot, priced at 650,000 yuan (USD 90,526), also performed the traditional Yangge dance during this year’s Spring Festival Gala. Unitree founder and CEO Wang Xingxing said the race was significant, as the H1 was the company’s first humanoid model.
Friday’s events included a football match, a kickboxing competition and a dance performance, where robots moved to pop music.
University teams also participated, including a group from Shandong Jiaotong University in Jinan. They developed their robot over a year with a budget of 50,000 yuan and were invited after placing third in the Robocon student robotics competition.
Despite the excitement, the games highlighted the challenges still facing humanoid robots. Some machines failed to start or finish the race, and one robot from Yobotics lost an arm but completed the course to applause.
In the football match, a fall by one robot caused a chain reaction, requiring human staff to remove several robots from the field.
Organisers said the games serve as testing grounds for evaluating robots’ decision-making, balance and interaction in complex environments. These capabilities are expected to be applied in homes and factories.
An official noted the event was not merely a show but a platform to test the limits, systems and collaboration of humanoid robots, adding that China has the infrastructure to support real-world applications.
Unitree’s H1 robot won the 1,500-metre race at the World Humanoid Robot Games
Over 500 robots from 16 countries are competing in 26 events in Beijing
The games run from Thursday to Sunday and include sports like football and kickboxing
Source: SCMP
