The 2026 Beijing E-Town Half-Marathon and Humanoid Robot Half-Marathon will kick off on April 19, with human and robot runners to compete on the same course.

By 24:00 on March 10 (the registration deadline), the organizing committee had received applications from over 100 teams, bringing together 26 brands with more than 300 humanoid robots.

This year's robot half-marathon has seen a major upgrade: the number of participating teams has grown nearly fivefold, while the number of universities involved is ten times that of the inaugural session. For the first time, autonomous navigation teams account for 38 percent of the participating teams. 26 robot brands have been involved, covering nearly all the major players in the market.

Clearer and stricter participation eligibility and hardware requirements have been introduced into this event. No more than three teams under the same entity may participate with robots of the same model, and all competing robots must be independent and integrated units. 

The course rules have also been refined, with two innovative competition modes—autonomous navigation and remote control, featuring the same course, mixed timing, and unified ranking.

A new "Baturu" robot challenge has also been introduced. The course features a combination of real-world disaster simulation and functional task modules, with 17 challenging obstacles, to comprehensively test the stability and flexibility of robots. The official "Baturu" challenge will be held on April 18, with an exhibition match scheduled alongside the half-marathon on April 19.

(Source: CCTV News)