Humanoid robotics event
Reading time 31 min readWorld Humanoid Robot Games 2026

World Humanoid Robot Games 2026 Schedule, Robots, Teams and Events

World Humanoid Robot Games 2026 archive with 2,056 robots, 666 teams, 51 events, 1,301 matches, final results, records, rules and real-world scenario tasks.

By TechniaHQRobot

World Humanoid Robot Games 2026 at Beijing National Speed Skating Oval with humanoid robots competing

The second World Humanoid Robot Games concluded on August 26 after 1,301 matches. Final Beijing reporting now makes it possible to separate preliminary performances from final results and to document the event’s autonomy rules, scenario tasks and competition records more precisely.

Introduction

The second World Humanoid Robot Games, officially 第二届世界人形机器人运动会 in Chinese, ran from August 22 to 26, 2026 at Beijing’s National Speed Skating Oval. The final field contained 2,056 robots and 666 teams from 16 countries across six continents.

The program contained 51 events and 1,301 matches over five days. Organizers split the final program into 30 competitive events and 21 scenario events built around nine real-world settings.

Final results now replace several preliminary figures that circulated during the week. Tiangong Ultra won the large-group 100 m in 8.64 seconds. The 400 m records were 45.66 seconds in the small group and 38.15 seconds in the large group. Tianzhuo won the 1500 m in 2 minutes 21.64 seconds.

The competition also exposed current limitations. Beijing’s closing coverage reported that autonomous systems could lose substantial performance when objects or environments changed in real-world scenario tasks. That gap between controlled movement and robust task completion is central to the Physical AI evidence from the event.

Research date September 3, 2026. Information verified from official sources available as of September 3, 2026.

Direct answer

The World Humanoid Robot Games 2026 ran August 22 to 26 at Beijing’s National Speed Skating Oval with 2,056 robots, 666 teams from 16 countries, 51 events and 1,301 matches. Tiangong Ultra won the large-group 100 m in 8.64 seconds. The large-group 400 m record reached 38.15 seconds and Tianzhuo won the 1500 m in 2 minutes 21.64 seconds.

Key findings

  • The second World Humanoid Robot Games ran August 22 to 26, 2026 at Beijing’s National Speed Skating Oval, the Ice Ribbon.
  • The final field contained 2,056 robots and 666 teams from 16 countries across six continents. China accounted for 641 teams and 1,975 robots.
  • Chinese participation included 157 companies and 200 universities or research institutes. The organizers did not publish a complete stable list of every participant in the sources used for this update.
  • The final program contained 51 events with 30 competitive events and 21 scenario events. The five-day schedule produced 1,301 matches across nine competition units.
  • Except for the 100 m obstacle race and 400 m obstacle race, the official August 13 rules required all track races and other competitive events to be completed fully autonomously. Scenario tasks received a score weight of 1 for full autonomy and 0.5 for remote control.
  • Tiangong Ultra won the large-group 100 m final in 8.64 seconds. The small-group winner, Tianxiao team, finished in 11.98 seconds.
  • The 400 m competition records were 45.66 seconds for the small group and 38.15 seconds for the large group. Tianzhuo won the 1500 m in 2 minutes 21.64 seconds.
  • The standing high jump competition record reached 3.40 m. Beijing reporting also credits Tiangong Ultra with a 4.83 m standing long jump.
  • Tiangong Omni won the 400 m obstacle final in 4 minutes 11 seconds after a course containing 16 obstacles.
  • Tsinghua University’s Hephaestus team retained the large-group 5v5 football title.
  • Qianxun Intelligence won the office comprehensive service scenario with 190 points after tasks involving meeting-table setup, printing and document shredding.
  • At closing, organizers released a full competition dataset for public use. Beijing also announced that the third Games are planned for August 2027.

World Humanoid Robot Games 2026 final key figures

ItemFinal 2026 figure
Official Chinese name第二届世界人形机器人运动会
DatesAugust 22 to 26, 2026
VenueNational Speed Skating Oval, Ice Ribbon, Beijing
Robots2,056
Teams666
Countries16 across six continents
Total events51
Competitive events30
Scenario events21
Matches1,301
Competition units9 across five days
China641 teams and 1,975 robots
Chinese participants157 companies and 200 universities or research institutes
Referees223 including 28 international, 75 national and 120 first-class referees
HostsBeijing Municipal People’s Government, China Media Group, World Robot Cooperation Organization and RCAP International Council

Selected final 2026 results

EventRobot or teamVerified result
100 m large groupTianjiao team, Tiangong Ultra8.64 s
100 m small groupTianxiao team11.98 s
400 m large groupTiangong Ultra38.15 s
400 m small groupTiangong Omni45.66 s
1500 mTianzhuo team, Tiangong Ultra2 min 21.64 s
Standing high jumpTiangong Ultra3.40 m competition record
Standing long jumpTiangong Ultra4.83 m reported by Beijing E-Town
400 m obstacleTiangong Omni4 min 11 s across 16 obstacles
5v5 football large groupTsinghua HephaestusChampion
Office comprehensive serviceQianxun IntelligenceChampion with 190 points

This is a selected result set sourced from Beijing authorities. It is not presented as a complete medal table.

World Humanoid Robot Games 2025 vs 2026

The 2025 figures are final post-event totals. The 2026 figures and results use post-event Beijing reporting through September 3, 2026.

20252026
280 teams666 teams
More than 500 robots2,056 robots
16 countries across five continents16 countries across six continents
26 events51 events
487 matches1,301 matches
3 competition days5 competition days
100 m official scored result 21.50 s100 m large-group final 8.64 s
400 m 1 min 28.03 s400 m small group 45.66 s and large group 38.15 s
1500 m 6 min 34.40 s1500 m 2 min 21.64 s
Mixed control modes with a 0.8 scoring coefficient for selected autonomous track entriesMost competitive events required full autonomy. Scenario tasks used separate autonomy score weights

World Humanoid Robot Games 2026 dates

The second World Humanoid Robot Games ran from Saturday, August 22 through Wednesday, August 26, 2026. Competition lasted five days at the National Speed Skating Oval in Beijing.

The 2026 page retains schedule information as an archive while using final post-event figures and results for the main factual record.

Official name and organizers

The official Chinese name is 第二届世界人形机器人运动会. Beijing’s event calendar identifies it as the second World Humanoid Robot Games.

The event was jointly hosted by the Beijing Municipal People’s Government, China Media Group, the World Robot Cooperation Organization and the RCAP International Council.

Where are the World Humanoid Robot Games 2026 held?

The Games were held at the National Speed Skating Oval in Beijing. The venue is also known as the Ice Ribbon and hosted the inaugural Games in 2025.

Beijing’s official event listing gives the venue address as 2 Lincui Road in Chaoyang District. The 2026 program also extended scenario competition into nine real-world settings around Chaoyang rather than keeping every task inside a simulated hall.

World Humanoid Robot Games 2026 schedule

The World Humanoid Robot Games 2026 schedule spanned August 22–26 and contained 1,301 matches across nine competition units. The official sources cited here do not provide a complete event-by-event timetable for every day.

The archived daily structure below separates confirmed program details from dates whose full allocation is not documented in the available sources. No unverified start time or event assignment has been added.

  1. Day 1

    Opening day

    Official pre-event reporting placed a 7v7 football exhibition plus 400 m and 100 m heats in the opening-night program.

  2. Day 2

    Competition day 2

    The Games were in competition. A complete verified event-by-event allocation for this date is not available in the cited sources.

  3. Day 3

    Competition day 3

    The Games were in competition. A complete verified event-by-event allocation for this date is not available in the cited sources.

  4. Day 4

    Competition day 4

    The Games were in competition. Official Beijing reporting published selected athletics and football results on August 25.

  5. Day 5

    Finals and closing day

    The archived program placed the freestyle-combat final and 5v5 football final before the closing ceremony. The Games concluded that day.

Archive note. This table records only daily details supported by the cited official sources. Missing event allocations and start times are left unfilled instead of being reconstructed or guessed.

World Humanoid Robot Games 2026 events

The final program contained 51 events. Organizers classified 30 as competitive events and 21 as scenario events. An earlier June announcement listed 50 events, so the August final program supersedes that number.

Competitive events covered athletics, football, gymnastics, weightlifting, martial arts, street dance, dancesport, tug-of-war and pitch-pot. Scenario events covered nine real-world settings including home, hotel, industrial, emergency rescue, library, retail, office service and new-energy vehicle charging.

Humanoid robot football

Football tests vision, localization, ball control, balance and multi-robot coordination. The program includes a 7v7 exhibition and competitive 5v5 groups, with a new 3v3 U19 category also announced.

Humanoid robot athletics

Athletics included the 100 m, 400 m, 1500 m, 4×100 m relay, obstacle racing and jump events. The August 13 rules required all track races other than the 100 m obstacle and 400 m obstacle to run fully autonomously.

Robot combat and kung fu

Martial arts, kung fu-style demonstrations, freestyle combat and other contact events stress balance recovery, whole-body control and safe force management.

Weightlifting, table tennis and tug-of-war

Weightlifting and tug-of-war expose force, traction and balance limits, while table tennis adds fast perception, prediction and precise arm timing.

Industrial manufacturing tasks

Industrial scenarios examine whether humanoid robots can position themselves, handle objects and complete structured production tasks reliably rather than perform only a single rehearsed motion.

Retail and restaurant scenarios

Retail, hotel and restaurant-style service scenarios test navigation around people, object selection, delivery and interaction in spaces built for human workers and customers.

Home cleaning

Home-service and cleaning tasks combine navigation, scene understanding and manipulation of objects that may not be placed in a perfectly repeatable position.

Rescue tasks

Emergency rescue scenarios test mobility, perception and task execution where obstacles, access and time pressure make a clean laboratory sequence less representative.

Dexterous manipulation

Eight dedicated dexterous-hand tasks tested fine manipulation. Official Beijing coverage included tool assembly, powder weighing, block building, nail fixing, bottle opening, unpacking, picking beans with tweezers and cable connection.

What “robot game 2026” means at this event

A search for robot game 2026 can refer to many kinds of robotics competition. At the World Humanoid Robot Games 2026, it covers robot sports such as football, athletics, combat, weightlifting and table tennis as well as scored real-world tasks in industrial, retail, restaurant, home-cleaning and rescue scenarios.

The common thread is embodied performance the robot must perceive, move, balance, coordinate or manipulate under competition rules. This is why one strong race does not automatically predict strong performance in a dexterous-hand or service task.

2,056 robots and 666 teams competed

The final field contained 2,056 robots across 666 teams from 16 countries on six continents. China accounted for 641 teams and 1,975 robots.

Chinese entries represented 157 companies and 200 universities or research institutes. Organizers highlighted participation from the United States, Germany, Japan and Brazil but did not publish a complete stable list of all 16 countries in the source set used here.

The field was 138 percent larger by team count than the inaugural 2025 Games, which had 280 teams.

The final program settled at 51 events

The event count changed during preparation. June materials described 50 events. The August 13 press conference set the final program at 51 with 30 competitive events and 21 scenario events.

Older references to 32 or 50 events describe earlier versions of the 2026 plan. This archive uses 51 because it is the final official competition total.

1,301 matches ran across five days

The Games staged 1,301 matches across nine competition units from August 22 to 26. The first edition had 487 matches across three competition days.

Opening night included a 7v7 football exhibition plus 400 m and 100 m heats. The closing day placed freestyle combat and 5v5 football finals before the closing ceremony.

Final athletics results replaced preliminary times

Several figures published during the competition were preliminary. Tianzhuo’s 9.39-second 100 m run came during the opening program. The large-group final was later won by Tianjiao team’s Tiangong Ultra in 8.64 seconds. Tianxiao won the small group in 11.98 seconds.

Tiangong Ultra also produced the 38.15-second large-group 400 m result. Tiangong Omni won the small group in 45.66 seconds. Tianzhuo won the 1500 m in 2 minutes 21.64 seconds. Beijing’s closing report lists these as major improvements over the 2025 competition records.

Sports now test more than running speed

The competitive program included athletics, football, gymnastics, weightlifting, martial arts, street dance, dancesport, freestyle combat, tug-of-war, pitch-pot and other events. Each stresses a different part of the humanoid stack including balance, contact control, perception latency, team coordination, force generation and recovery.

Football added a 3v3 U19 category alongside 5v5 large and medium groups. Tsinghua Hephaestus retained the large-group 5v5 title in 2026 according to Beijing education authorities.

The 2026 rules raised the autonomy requirement

The August 13 official rules state that every track race and other competitive event had to be completed fully autonomously except the 100 m obstacle and 400 m obstacle races.

Scenario events used a separate scoring rule. A task completed fully autonomously received a final-score weight of 1 while a remotely controlled completion received 0.5.

These rules still do not support a claim of general autonomy. A robot can satisfy one competition rule with a task-specific controller and still require human intervention or fail when the environment changes.

21 scenario events tested work in real settings

The scenario program expanded from six events in 2025 to 21 in 2026. Organizers built tasks around nine real-world settings rather than relying only on simplified stage layouts.

In the office comprehensive service final, robots had to arrange meeting materials, load and operate a printer, deliver printed documents and feed documents into a shredder. Qianxun Intelligence won with 190 points. Shenzhen Zhiyuan and Ningxia Zhiyuan finished second and third.

Beijing’s closing analysis also documented a limitation. Autonomous robots could perform well in familiar conditions but lose success rate when an object or environment changed. That is direct evidence of a generalization gap in current embodied systems.

Dexterous-hand tasks measured sub-centimeter precision

Eight dexterous-hand tasks included tool assembly, powder weighing, block building, nail fixing, bottle opening, unpacking, picking beans with tweezers and cable connection.

Beijing reporting on the finals describes teams adjusting perception for lighting changes and choosing between full autonomy and remote control. These tasks expose errors in visual localization, fingertip positioning, force control and recovery that are easy to hide in large-object handling.

The training center produced useful pre-event data

By August 13, the humanoid robot training and evaluation base at the venue had operated for 30 days and hosted nearly 1,000 training sessions. The organizer’s robot management platform had connected all 666 teams and 2,056 robots.

The system used dedicated encrypted communication links and tracked operational data such as joint temperature, motion state and battery level. The training period remains useful context because teams exposed locomotion, manipulation and scenario-task problems during repeated practice before formal competition began.

Failures exposed stability and generalization limits

The event produced visible falls, missed grasps, navigation errors and stalled task sequences. More important than any single fall was whether the robot recovered without a reset and whether the same policy remained effective after conditions changed.

The official closing coverage specifically noted that some autonomous robots struggled when objects or environments differed from training conditions. That limitation is more informative for deployment than a single successful run.

  • Missed grasps whether the robot can detect a failed pickup and try again.
  • Falls and recovery whether it can stand up without a manual reset.
  • Balance under contact whether pushing, lifting or tugging destabilizes the whole body.
  • Two-hand coordination whether both hands can maintain alignment during fine tasks.
  • Navigation mistakes lane drift, wrong object selection or poor positioning before manipulation.
  • Teleoperation whether a human has to take over when the autonomous policy breaks.
  • Repeatability whether a strong run can be reproduced across multiple heats or task attempts.

Tickets and practical information

The Games ran August 22–26 at the National Speed Skating Oval, the Ice Ribbon, in Beijing. Tickets were listed from RMB 98 to RMB 670 depending on the session and seating category.

Sales channels named in pre-event Beijing reporting included the Chaopiao Saiyan WeChat mini-program, Damai, Maoyan, JD Entertainment Ticketing, Trip.com, Tongcheng and Meituan. This information is retained as an event archive, not as a current ticket offer.

The 2025 edition remains a separate archive

The inaugural 2025 World Humanoid Robot Games remain on their existing archive URL with final participation figures, control rules and selected results.

The two pages are linked through the edition navigation above so readers can move between years without mixing 2025 scoring rules with 2026 results.

The 2026 field expanded across companies and universities

The confirmed field contained 2,056 robots, 666 teams and 16 countries across six continents. China contributed 641 teams and 1,975 robots.

The Chinese field included 157 companies and 200 universities or research institutes. Beijing reported that 69 schools from the city participated and that university teams won medals across football, table tennis and freestyle combat.

Companies participating

Official coverage confirms robots and teams linked to the Beijing Humanoid Robot Innovation Center, Booster Robotics, Galbot and other Chinese robotics companies. This page names a company only when the event or a Beijing authority links it directly to the 2026 Games.

Universities and research institutes

The official participant count includes 200 Chinese universities or research institutes. Tsinghua Hephaestus is one confirmed example. The team retained the large-group 5v5 football title.

Why people call it the Robot Olympics

Robot Olympics is an informal phrase used by readers and media for an international event that combines multiple robot sports, national participation and medal-style competition. It is a useful description of the search intent, but it is not the official event name.

The official name of the event covered on this page is World Humanoid Robot Games 2026. Using that name keeps the Beijing competition distinct from other robotics contests and avoids implying an affiliation with the Olympic Games.

Is “Robot Olympics 2026” the same event?

In the context of humanoid robot sports in Beijing from August 22–26, a search for Robot Olympics 2026 will often be pointing to the World Humanoid Robot Games 2026. The phrases describe the same search target here, but only World Humanoid Robot Games is treated as the official name.

Robots and teams with verified 2026 results

Tiangong Ultra from the Beijing Humanoid Robot Innovation Center is the clearest multi-event athletics platform in the official result set. It is linked to the 8.64-second large-group 100 m win, the 38.15-second 400 m result, the 2 minute 21.64 second 1500 m win through Tianzhuo team and the 3.40 m standing high jump competition record.

Tiangong Omni won the small-group 400 m in 45.66 seconds and the 400 m obstacle final in 4 minutes 11 seconds. The obstacle course contained 16 elements including hurdles, ramps, stairs, slippery surfaces and narrow stepping sections.

Tsinghua Hephaestus retained the large-group 5v5 football title. Qianxun Intelligence won the office comprehensive service scenario with 190 points. These results cover different capabilities and should not be collapsed into a single overall robot ranking.

Technology behind the competition

The Games tested complete robot systems rather than one model component. Mechanical design, sensing, control and AI had to work together under time limits, scoring rules and repeated attempts.

Locomotion

Beijing E-Town reporting says Tiangong Ultra was upgraded in joint motors, mechanical configuration, thermal management, lightweight design and aerodynamics. Training also differed by event. The 100 m emphasized acceleration while the 400 m and 1500 m emphasized cornering speed and sustained control.

Balance and recovery

Fast cornering and obstacle contact create disturbances that a preplanned trajectory cannot ignore. The Tiangong team reported work on high-speed turning control because loss of control at more than 10 m/s could throw the robot outward on the bend.

Dexterous hands

The hand events required precise perception and contact. Tool assembly, tweezers, cable connection and bottle opening made small positioning errors visible in the score.

Vision

Cameras and other sensors had to locate lanes, balls, obstacles, tools and task objects. Teams in the dexterous-hand final reported that venue lighting required perception adjustments before the final.

AI models

The event rules distinguish autonomous execution from remote control. That is a useful boundary for interpreting AI claims. A learned or model-based policy should be credited only for the task the source confirms.

Embodied AI and Physical AI

Embodied AI and Physical AI become measurable here through task completion, intervention, recovery and adaptation. The scenario competitions showed that strong movement does not guarantee robust manipulation or generalization when the physical environment changes.

Real-world manipulation

Office, retail, hotel, industrial, charging and rescue tasks required body positioning plus manipulation around human-scale equipment. The office final used a printer, shredder, meeting table, name cards, paper and bottled water rather than abstract blocks alone.

The organizers released the full competition dataset

At the August 26 closing ceremony, organizers released what Beijing described as the full dataset from the world-level humanoid robot competition and made it available to the public.

The dataset announcement is important because repeated competition traces can support analysis beyond medal results. This page does not claim a specific dataset size or sensor schema because those details were not stated in the official closing source used here.

What five days of repeated competition revealed

The 1,301 matches created repeated evidence across speed, contact, manipulation and service workflows. That makes recovery rate, intervention and repeatability visible in a way that a selected product clip cannot.

The strongest 2026 signal is the split between rapidly improving locomotion and less reliable generalization in real tasks. Track records improved sharply while official closing coverage still documented failures when scenario conditions changed.

Limitations and missing information

  • This page includes selected results supported by official event or Beijing government sources. It does not claim to reproduce the complete medal table for all 51 events.
  • The final field contained 2,056 robots but the sources do not describe them as 2,056 identical general-purpose humanoids. Hardware, size classes and task specialization varied.
  • Full autonomy in a competition event is a rule-defined property for that event. It does not establish general autonomy across unrelated tasks.
  • The 100 m obstacle and 400 m obstacle races were exceptions to the broad 2026 competitive-event autonomy requirement. Scenario tasks could also be completed by remote control with a lower score weight.
  • The public official source set confirms 16 countries but does not provide a complete stable list of all 16. Unverified country names were not added.
  • No complete official participant roster was available in a stable source during this update. Prominent companies are not labeled as participants unless an official source links them to the Games.

Conclusion

The 2026 Games produced a cleaner technical record than the first edition because the field was larger, the autonomy rules were clearer and repeated competition covered both sports and real work scenarios.

The results show a sharp one-year improvement in locomotion. They also leave a harder problem unresolved. Robust manipulation and generalization still degrade when the physical task changes.

Frequently asked questions

When are the World Humanoid Robot Games 2026?

The second World Humanoid Robot Games ran from August 22 to August 26, 2026 at Beijing’s National Speed Skating Oval.

How many robots are competing in 2026?

The August 13 official press conference confirmed 2,056 robots.

How many teams are competing?

The official registration briefing listed 666 teams. China accounted for 641 teams and 1,975 robots.

How many countries are participating?

Organizers confirm 16 countries across six continents. The public August 13 briefing explicitly mentions China, the United States, Germany, Japan and Brazil but does not publish the complete list of all 16.

How many events are in the World Humanoid Robot Games 2026?

The final program contained 51 events with 30 competitive events and 21 scenario events.

How many matches will be held?

The Games completed 1,301 matches across nine competition units over five days.

What is the World Humanoid Robot Games 2026 schedule?

The Games ran August 22–26, 2026. Official sources identify opening-day 100 m and 400 m heats plus a 7v7 football exhibition, and closing-day freestyle-combat and 5v5 football finals. The cited sources do not provide a complete event-by-event timetable for every day.

Is Robot Olympics 2026 the official name?

No. Robot Olympics is an informal phrase people may use when searching for the event. The official name covered here is World Humanoid Robot Games 2026.

What kinds of robot game are included in 2026?

The program combined athletics, football, gymnastics, weightlifting, martial arts, dance, tug-of-war and other competitive events with 21 scenario events across nine real-world settings.

Which races are fully autonomous?

The August 13 rules required all track races and other competitive events to be completed fully autonomously except the 100 m obstacle and 400 m obstacle races. Scenario tasks used separate score weights for full autonomy and remote control.

How much are tickets?

Pre-event official information listed tickets from RMB 98 to RMB 670 depending on the session and seating category. The event has ended.

Sources and methodology

This page was re-verified on September 3, 2026 using the official World Humanoid Robot Games site, Beijing Municipal Government press conferences, Beijing municipal event listings and post-event reports. Xinhua is used only as supplementary evidence where needed.

Final results take priority over preliminary and semifinal times. The 8.64-second 100 m final replaces the earlier 9.39-second opening performance as the headline result.

Autonomy claims are tied to the published 2026 competition rules. The page does not infer general autonomy from a robot completing one autonomous event.

Records are described as competition records unless an official source explicitly applies a broader label.

Fact-check report

Verified

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