{
  "id": 2585939,
  "title": "Chinese robot beats Usain Bolt's 100m world record",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/22/chinese-robot-beats-usain-bolts-100m-world-record-2585939",
  "topic": "tech",
  "section": "Tech",
  "published": "2026-08-22T12:41:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Deutsche Welle Science",
    "slug": "deutsche-welle-science",
    "url": "https://www.dw.com/en/chinese-robot-beats-usain-bolt-s-100m-world-record/a-78468749?maca=en-rss-en-science-4552-rdf"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "A Chinese humanoid robot named Lightning set a new world record for the 100-meter race, completing it in 9.32 seconds, according to Chinese media reports on Saturday. This surpassed the previous human record set by Jamaican Usain Bolt at the World Athletics Championships in Berlin in 2009, where he clocked in at 9.58 seconds. The robot's performance was during the second World Humanoid Robot Games that kicked off in Beijing on Saturday. The event brought together technology companies and university groups from around the world to showcase the capabilities of their robots. Lightning's impressive speed is seen as a significant milestone in the field of artificial intelligence, as earlier versions of humanoid robots were struggling to finish a race at all. The robot, developed by Chinese smartphone manufacturer Honor, also won the Beijing half-marathon earlier this April, finishing in 50 minutes and 26 seconds. This was several minutes faster than the current human world record holder, Jacob Kiplimo of Uganda, who ran the same distance in 57 minutes in Lisbon in March. Lightning stood 169 centimeters tall and had 95-centimeter legs during the half-marathon. To prepare for the World Humanoid Robot Games, Lightning's legs were extended by 10 centimeters to 1.05 meters.",
  "summary": "The Chinese humanoid robot \"Lightning\" ran a 100-meter trial race faster than human world-record holder Usain Bolt. A year ago, humanoid robots struggled to finish a race.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 8,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "SABC News",
        "title": "Chinese robot beats Usain Bolt’s 100m world record in test run",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/22/chinese-robot-beats-usain-bolts-100m-world-record-in-test-run",
        "published": "2026-08-22T11:32:28.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Free Press Journal",
        "title": "Chinese Humanoid Robot Lightning Runs 100m In 9.32 Seconds, Surpassing Usain Bolt’s 9.58-Second World Record | VIDEO",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/22/chinese-humanoid-robot-lightning-runs-100m-in-9-32-seconds-surpassing",
        "published": "2026-08-22T11:57:13.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "DW News",
        "title": "Chinese robot beats Usain Bolt's 100m world record",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/22/chinese-robot-beats-usain-bolts-100m-world-record",
        "published": "2026-08-22T12:41:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Business Recorder",
        "title": "Chinese robot beats Usain Bolt's 100m world record in test run",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/22/chinese-robot-beats-usain-bolts-100m-world-record-in-test-run-2575621",
        "published": "2026-08-22T12:43:16.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "ABC News AU",
        "title": "'Lightning' the Chinese robot beats Usain Bolt's 100m world record",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/22/lightning-the-chinese-robot-beats-usain-bolts-100m-world-record",
        "published": "2026-08-22T13:38:16.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "BBC News",
        "title": "Watch: Moment robot attempts to beat Usain Bolt's 100m record",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/22/watch-moment-robot-attempts-to-beat-usain-bolts-100m-record",
        "published": "2026-08-22T14:10:05.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Daily Times",
        "title": "Chinese robot beats Usain Bolt’s 100m record",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/22/chinese-robot-beats-usain-bolts-100m-record",
        "published": "2026-08-22T15:13:27.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}