Robots set to take on humans in first-ever long distance running race

What's the point of creating a humanoid robot if you can't race it? Well, many people agree with that sentiment, as a first-of-its-kind event is being planned where humans will take on humanoid robots over several miles.

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In what seems like a humorous story at face value, engineers have been officially asked by event organizers to enter their bipedal robots into a long-distance running race that will take place in the Chinese capital's Daxing district. The event is being organized by the Beijing Economic-Technological Development Area (E-Town), and tech firms have been invited to enter their humanoid robots, but there are a few stipulations.

Engineers must make sure their robot has a humanoid appearance and mechanical structure designed to be bipedal, meaning it moves using two legs. As you can probably imagine, using wheels to create any movement is wholly forbidden. Other rules include the height requirement of between 19.7 inches and 78.7 inches, with a maximum leg extension distance, which measures from the hip joint to the base of the foot, of 17.7 inches.

Will the robots be running the race on their own? That is up to their creators as the robots are allowed to be completely autonomous or remote-controlled. Battery swaps are also allowed.