Robot emergency rescue challenge held in Beijing
An emergency rescue challenge for robots was held in Beijing on Saturday, as part of the 2026 Beijing E-Town Humanoid Robot Half Marathon scheduled for Sunday.
At the 3,500-square-meter competition venue, an obstacle course was set up to simulate disaster scenarios—earthquakes, floods, and fires—serving as an extreme stress test for the robots' core capabilities, including dynamic balance, precision manipulation, obstacle climbing, and load-bearing operations.
The course has a total of 17 challenges divided into three categories: general events, specialized events, and ultimate challenges. Robots compete in groups based on their design—humanoid, quadruped, or wheeled-legged hybrid—with each group corresponding to a specific combination of specialized events.
General challenges require robots to demonstrate their basic all-terrain adaptability by navigating a narrow bridge, climbing a roof, traversing a swinging pendulum, jumping over a "cliff", and traversing a simulated mountain path.
The humanoid robot course focuses on testing human-like operational capabilities with tasks such as squeezing through narrow passageways, building dams, door-breaking and obstacle clearance, window-breaking rescue, and emergency valve closure.
The event for quadrupedal robots emphasizes navigation in complex environments and search-and-rescue operations. It features tasks such as climbing through rapids, navigating through pipes, desert search-and-rescue, and supply delivery.
The ultimate challenges at the center of the venue require humanoid robots to move atop vertical pillars and quadrupedal robots to navigate narrow passages, test the robots' stability in extreme conditions and their ability to make autonomous decisions.
Saturday's event attracted 37 teams from 19 institutions, competing with 31 remotely controlled robots and 9 autonomous navigation robots.
With participation from top Chinese robotics companies and top universities from the Chinese mainland and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, the event showcased the latest technological level of embodied intelligence in China.
For outstanding teams in the competition, Beijing will provide access to real-world scenarios such as emergency response and municipal inspections, along with comprehensive support, including venture capital, industrial space, public service platforms, and policy incentives, to facilitate the rapid implementation of technological innovations.
