From phones to robots: China’s supply chain eyes next growth curve in humanoid

China’s electronics supply chain is pivoting toward the humanoid robotics industry

Chinese tech giants, including Honor (a Huawei spin-off) and Alibaba, are increasingly investing in robotics as China aims to accelerate growth in the sector. Honor, expanding into robotics just last year, surprisingly won the Beijing humanoid half-marathon on Sunday. Its Lightning humanoid robot completed the race in 50 minutes and 26 seconds. This time outperformed other leading Chinese robotics companies like Unitree and X-Humanoid, and also surpassed the human world record for the distance. The event highlights China's growing ambitions and progress in robotics technology.

In Beijing on April 19, 2026, a humanoid robot from Chinese smartphone maker Honor won a half-marathon race for robots, completing the 21-kilometer course in 50 minutes and 26 seconds. This time surpassed the human world record for the same distance. The race, held alongside a human half-marathon, was the second of its kind in Beijing E-Town and demonstrated China's advancements in robotics. While some robots experienced difficulties like falling or bumping into barriers, the winning robot's design, modeled after human athletes and equipped with a liquid-cooling system, proved successful. Honor's test development engineer suggested that technologies developed for the robot could potentially be applied to industrial settings in the future.

A humanoid robot broke the half-marathon world record at a race in Beijing on Sunday. The robot, developed by Chinese smartphone maker Honor, completed the 21km course in 50 minutes and 26 seconds, surpassing the current human record. The race, held in Yizhuang, featured over 100 humanoid robots competing alongside human runners in separate lanes. This event highlights the rapid advancements in Chinese robotics, with significant improvements in robot agility and speed compared to the previous year's race. The winning robot was equipped with an autonomous navigation system. Spectators observed the race, showcasing the growing interest in humanoid robot technology.

In Beijing, over 100 Chinese-made humanoid robots participated in a half-marathon, demonstrating significant performance improvements compared to the previous year. The robots ran on parallel tracks to human runners. The winning robot, developed by Honor, completed the race in 50 minutes and 26 seconds, faster than the current world record, although it crashed near the finish line. This event highlights China's advancements in humanoid robotics and their potential applications in various sectors, including dangerous jobs and combat. China aims to become a leader in this industry through supportive policies and infrastructure development, showcasing these advancements in events like the Spring Festival gala.