106,286 kilometers in three days. Chinese robots enter Guinness World Records for having covered this distance, the furthest distance ever traveled on foot using a humanoid machine.
Standing 1.69 m tall and standing on two legs, the AgiBot A2 left the city of Suzhou, in eastern China, on the evening of November 10. The humanoid robot crossed highways and highways to arrive in Shanghai’s historic Bund district three days later, on November 13, reported the Guinness World Records.
The Shanghai company AgiBot, which created this bipedal robot, has assured that the machine “covering a variety of surfaces… while respecting the rules of the road”during an uninterrupted journey of more than 100 kilometers, which was certified as the first feat of its kind.
A promotional video shows the A2, black and silver, moving slowly but surely along the road to Shanghai. These robots are designed for tasks such as customer service, and are packed with functions “discussion” and equipped with the ability to read lips.
Global technology companies are investing huge amounts of money in AI hardware (“Physical AI” in English), who understand the laws of physics and can understand and evolve in the human world. According to Morgan Stanley estimates, the world will have more than one billion humanoid robots by 2050.
The Chinese government is encouraging domestic companies to develop such robots, in hopes of becoming a global leader in the industry. In August, Beijing hosted the first global humanoid robot games, where more than 500 “athletes” competed in various disciplines: basketball, dance and even… hotel room cleaning. Competitions that AgiBot A2 can take part in, provided that a long distance walking category is created.
