
Chinese-developed robot completes 100-metre sprint in 9.32 seconds, surpassing the human world record.
AI-generated summary
China is currently promoting humanoid robots as a strategic industry, focusing on AI and hardware integration for manufacturing and logistics.
A humanoid robot developed by Chinese smartphone maker Honor ran 100 metres (328ft) in 9.32 seconds, China’s state broadcaster has reported, beating the human world record held by Jamaican sprinting great Usain Bolt.
The robot, dubbed Lightning, reached a peak speed of 14.5 metres (47.6ft) per second during a preparatory test event for the second World Humanoid Robot Games, which opened in Beijing on Saturday.
The performance surpassed the 9.58-second men’s 100-metre world record set by Bolt at the World Athletics Championships in Berlin in 2009.
China has been promoting humanoid robots as a strategic emerging industry, with policymakers and companies betting that advances in AI and hardware will accelerate their deployment in manufacturing, logistics and consumer applications.
Lightning also won the 21km (13-mile) Beijing half marathon in April in 50 minutes and 26 seconds, faster than the elite men’s human world-record pace.
The robot stood 169cm (5.5ft) tall and had 95cm (3.1ft) legs at the half marathon. Researchers have since lengthened its legs by 10 cm to 1.05 metres (3.4ft) before the World Humanoid Robot Games, CCTV reported.

A roundup of tech and science developments including NASA's cancellation of the Swift telescope rescue, Tesla's massive recall in China, Meta's ongoing legal challenges regarding child safety, and the rise of Inner Mongolia as an AI data center hub.

WIRED reports on Flock Safety's AI tools, OpenAI's safety overhaul, and vulnerabilities allowing 'zombified' expired Visa cards to be used for fraud. Additionally, Apple issued record spyware warnings, and Ukraine targeted Russian retailer Wildberries with cyber and drone attacks.

Ulanqab, Inner Mongolia, is rapidly becoming a major AI data center hub due to low energy costs and cold climate. While companies like DeepSeek and ByteDance invest heavily, the region faces significant water scarcity and ongoing reliance on coal power.

Award-winning Hollywood writers and directors are taking gig jobs paying $12 to $200 an hour to train AI models, seeking income amid a severe industry job slump despite concerns they are helping automate their own professions.

Experts in Silicon Valley warn of an imminent AI takeoff and existential risks, citing recursive self-improvement, autonomous agent breakouts, and a lack of global regulatory coordination amid US-China rivalry.

Meta faces a landmark trial brought by U.S. states seeking to ban addictive design features on Instagram and Facebook, potentially reshaping social media and setting a major precedent.