Robots running into walls go viral ahead of 2026 World Humanoid Robot Games | Mashable

A few humanoid robots have apparently encountered issues while preparing for the track events.

Credit: Jia Tianyong / China News Service / VCG via Getty Images

The second World Humanoid Robot Games will kick off this weekend in Beijing, China, gathering tech companies and university groups from around the world to test their robots across 50 events. As such, entrants have been running last-minute tests in preparation for the competition, showcasing some impressive feats — and amusing failures.<br>Last year's inaugural Games featured over 500 robots from 280 teams, competing in 26 events. These not only included sports such as floor gymnastics and soccer, but also competitions designed to test the robots' capabilities when working in hotel, factory, and hospital scenarios.

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The Games have grown considerably this year, involving 2056 robots presented by 666 teams from across 16 countries. New athletic events such as table tennis, tug of war, and weightlifting have been added, alongside expanded "scenario-based events" like assembling power tools, conducting a fire rescue, and charging an electric car.<br>They also have varying automation requirements. While human operators are permitted in sporting events like long jump and kickboxing, the humanoid robots are required to act independently in ones such as breakdancing, cheerleading, and the 4x100-metre relay. Though the rules for scenario-based events are less strict, allowing both automation and remote control, the scores for the latter are halved. As such, entrants who submit fully autonomous robots have a definite edge.

Teams have come from across the world to compete.<br>Credit: Jia Tianyong / China News Service / VCG via Getty Images

According to the World Humanoid Robot Games' website, participating robots are to "demonstrate a perfect balance of strength, speed, and flexibility" in the sporting events, while the scenario events will test them "on functionality and adaptability in real-world environments."<br>"As the world's first multidimensional humanoid robot competition encompassing 'sports + art + application,' the Games adhere to the principles of fair competition, open innovation, safety control, and industrial synergy," the World Humanoid Robot Games states. "Participating teams are encouraged to push athletic boundaries through technological innovation and to explore the infinite possibilities of human–robot coexistence through interdisciplinary collaboration."

The Galbot ET1 is one of the many humanoid robots at this year's Games.<br>Credit: Lintao Zhang / Getty Images

Chinese robotics companies Unitree and X-Humanoid dominated the competition last year, topping the medal tally at 11 and 10 respectively. Of these, Unitree's H1 humanoid robot scored the company's four gold medals in track and field events, while X-Humanoid took two golds in the 100-metre sprint and a factory floor scenario.

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Unitree is likely to do well again this year. The company previewed its new "Superman" humanoid robot earlier this week, sharing a video of it jumping approximately 2 metres high as well as running at 12.658 m/s. The top recorded speed reached by world-class sprinter Usain Bolt — credited with being the fastest man in the world — was 12.42 m/s.<br>"This new machine has only been in development for a little over three months, with significant room for further improvement in the coming months," Unitree claimed.

Unitree's demonstration combined with last year's performance certainly makes it one to watch, particularly as the new Superman robot seems likely to compete. Earlier this week, robotics expert Eren Chen shared a clip on X that appeared to show Unitree's Superman doing a test run on the World Humanoid Robot Games' track, though it sprinted off course and crashed into some electrical boxes.<br>While the 2026 World Humanoid Robot Games runs from Aug. 22 to 26, some teams arrived at Beijing's National Speed Skating Oval ahead of time, with videos of their preparations spreading online. Another viral clip Chen shared showed an unidentified humanoid robot running down the track before colliding with a cushioned blue wall. Unfortunately it was unable to catch itself, falling backwards onto its head and apparently breaking at the waist, sending sparks flying.

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