Step by mechanical step, dozens of humanoid robots took to the streets of Beijing early on Saturday, joining thousands of their flesh-and-blood counterparts in a world-first half marathon showcasing China's drive to lead the global race in cutting-edge technology.

The 21-kilometre (13-mile) event held in the Chinese capital's E-Town -- a state-backed high-tech manufacturing hub -- was billed as a groundbreaking effort to test the limits of bipedal robots in real-world conditions.

At the crack of the starter's gun, the robots began taking their first tentative steps as the Chinese pop song "I Believe" blared out from loudspeakers.

Curious human runners lined the roadside, phones in hand ready to photograph each machine as it began the race.

One smaller-sized android fell over and lay on the ground for several minutes, before getting up by itself to loud cheers.

Another, powered by propellers, veered across the starting line before crashing into a barrier and knocking over an engineer.

Crossing the finish line first despite a mid-race fall was the tallest droid and one of the heaviest in the competition. At 180 centimetres (5.9 feet) tall and weighing 52 kilograms (114.6 pounds), the metallic black "Tiangong Ultra" finished in two hours, 40 minutes and 42 seconds.

The men's and women's winners, both from Ethiopia, finished in one hour, two minutes and 36 seconds, and in one hour, 11 minutes and seven seconds respectively, according to state media.

Tang Jian, chief technology officer of the Beijing Humanoid Robot Innovation Center which developed "Tiangong", told reporters the company was "very happy with the results".

"We had set three goals for ourselves: first, to win the championship; second, to complete the entire half marathon with a single robot -- a very important goal for us; and third, to finish the race in under three hours," he said.

"We collected real-world running data from professional athletes and trained the robot so that its gait, cadence, stride length, and various postures could match those of professional runners as closely as possible."

The Beijing Humanoid Robot Innovation Center, first established by the government, is now owned by Chinese tech firms Xiaomi Robotics and UBTech Robotics as well as two state-owned companies, according to business data provider Tianyancha.

Enthusiastic onlookers cheered the robots on from the sidelines.

"My daughter... got up really early and asked to come watch the robot marathon," spectator Huang Xiaoyu told AFP, holding her child.

"It was quite a breathtaking experience -- we were able to see some of the most cutting-edge robots in our country."

Tech race

Around 20 teams from across China participated in the competition, with robots ranging from 75 to 180 centimetres tall and weighing up to 88 kilograms.

Some jogged autonomously, while others were guided remotely by their engineers. Robots and human participants ran on separate tracks.

"Getting onto the race track might seem like a small step for humans, but it's a giant leap for humanoid robots," Liang Liang, Beijing E-Town's management committee deputy director, told AFP.

Engineers said the goal was to test the performance and reliability of the androids -- emphasising that finishing the race, not winning it, was the main objective.

"There are very few opportunities for the whole industry to run at full speed over such a long distance or duration," Cui Wenhao, a 28-year-old engineer at Noetix Robotics, told AFP.

"It's a serious test for the battery, the motors, the structure -- even the algorithms."

Kong Yichang, a 25-year-old engineer from DroidUp, said the race would help to "lay a foundation for a whole series of future activities involving humanoid robots".

China, the world's second-largest economy, has sought to assert its dominance in the fields of artificial intelligence and robotics, positioning itself as a direct challenger to the United States.

In January, Chinese start-up DeepSeek drew attention with a chatbot it claimed was developed more cost-effectively than its US counterparts.

Dancing humanoid robots also captivated audiences during a televised Chinese New Year gala.

AFP