logo
No sweat: Humanoid robots run a Chinese half-marathon alongside flesh-and-blood competitors

No sweat: Humanoid robots run a Chinese half-marathon alongside flesh-and-blood competitors

BEIJING (AP) — In one small step for robot-kind — thousands of them, really — humanoid robots ran alongside actual humans in a half-marathon in the Chinese capital on Saturday.
The bipedal robots of various makes and sizes navigated the 21.1-kilometer (13.1-mile) course supported by teams of human navigators, operators, and engineers, in what event organizers say was a first. As a precaution, a divider separated the parallel tracks used by the robots and people.
While flesh-and-blood participants followed conventional rules, the 20 teams fielding machines in the Humanoid Robot Half-Marathon competed under tailored guidelines, which included battery swap pit stops.
The Sky Project Ultra robot, also known as Tien Kung Ultra, from the Tien Kung Team, claimed victory among the nonhumans, crossing the finish line in 2 hours, 40 minutes, and 42 seconds.
Awards were also given out for best endurance, best gait design and most innovative form.

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Nvidia chief calls AI ‘the greatest equalizer' — but warns Europe risks falling behind
Nvidia chief calls AI ‘the greatest equalizer' — but warns Europe risks falling behind

San Francisco Chronicle​

time4 hours ago

  • San Francisco Chronicle​

Nvidia chief calls AI ‘the greatest equalizer' — but warns Europe risks falling behind

PARIS (AP) — Will artificial intelligence save humanity — or destroy it? Lift up the world's poorest — or tighten the grip of a tech elite? Jensen Huang — the global chip tycoon widely predicted to become one of the world's first trillionaires — offered his answer on Wednesday: neither dystopia nor domination. AI, he said, is a tool for liberation. Wearing his signature biker jacket and mobbed by fans for selfies, the Nvidia CEO cut the figure of a tech rockstar as he took the stage at VivaTech in Paris. 'AI is the greatest equalizer of people the world has ever created,' Huang said, kicking off one of Europe's biggest technology industry fairs. Huang's core argument: AI can level the playing field, not tilt it. Critics argue Nvidia's dominance risks concentrating power in the hands of a few. But Huang insists the opposite — that by slashing computing costs and expanding access, 'we're democratizing intelligence' for startups and nations alike. But beyond the sheeny optics, Nvidia used the Paris summit to unveil a wave of infrastructure announcements across Europe, signaling a dramatic expansion of the AI chipmaker's physical and strategic footprint on the continent. In France, the company is deploying 18,000 of its new Blackwell chips with startup Mistral AI. In Germany, it's building an industrial AI cloud to support manufacturers. Similar rollouts are underway in Italy, Spain, Finland and the U.K., including a new AI lab in Britain. Other announcements include a partnership with AI startup Perplexity to bring sovereign AI models to European publishers and telecoms, a new cloud platform with Mistral AI, and work with BMW and Mercedes-Benz to train AI-powered robots for use in auto plants. The announcements underscore how central AI infrastructure has become to global strategy — and how Nvidia, now the world's most valuable chipmaker, is positioning itself as the engine behind it. As the company rolls out ever more powerful systems, critics warn the model risks creating a new kind of 'technological priesthood' — one in which only the wealthiest companies or governments can afford the compute power, energy, and elite engineering talent required to participate. That, they argue, could choke the bottom-up innovation that built the tech industry in the first place. Huang pushed back. 'Through the velocity of our innovation, we democratize,' he said, responding to a question by The Associated Press. 'We lower the cost of access to technology.' As Huang put it, these factories 'reason,' 'plan,' and 'spend a lot of time talking to' themselves, powering everything from ChatGPT to autonomous vehicles and diagnostics. But some critics warn that without guardrails, such all-seeing, self-reinforcing systems could go the way of Skynet in ' The Terminator ' movie — vast intelligence engines that outpace human control. To that, Huang offers a counter-model: layered AI governance by design. 'In the future,' he said, 'the AI that is doing the task is going to be surrounded by 70 or 80 other AIs that are supervising it, observing it, guarding it, ensuring that it doesn't go off the rails.' He likened the moment to a new industrial revolution. Just as electricity transformed the last one, Huang said, AI will power the next — and that means every country needs a national intelligence infrastructure. That's why, he explained, he's been crisscrossing the globe meeting heads of state. 'They all want AI to be part of their infrastructure,' he said. 'They want AI to be a growth manufacturing industry for them.' Europe, long praised for its leadership on digital rights, now finds itself at a crossroads. As Brussels pushes forward with world-first AI regulations, some warn that over-caution could cost the bloc its place in the global race. With the U.S. and China surging ahead and most major AI firms based elsewhere, the risk isn't just falling behind — it's becoming irrelevant. Huang has a different vision: sovereign AI. Not isolation, but autonomy — building national AI systems aligned with local values, independent of foreign tech giants. 'The data belongs to you,' Huang said. 'It belongs to your people, your country... your culture, your history, your common sense.' But fears over AI misuse remain potent — from surveillance and deepfake propaganda to job losses and algorithmic discrimination. Huang doesn't deny the risks. But he insists the technology can be kept in check — by itself. The VivaTech event was part of Huang's broader European tour. He had already appeared at London Tech Week and is scheduled to visit Germany. In Paris, he joined French President Emmanuel Macron and Mistral AI CEO Arthur Mensch to reinforce his message that AI is now a national priority.

Xiaomi SU7 Ultra Shattered Rimac's Nurburgring Lap Record
Xiaomi SU7 Ultra Shattered Rimac's Nurburgring Lap Record

Miami Herald

time4 hours ago

  • Miami Herald

Xiaomi SU7 Ultra Shattered Rimac's Nurburgring Lap Record

Chinese electric cars have been on the lips of Western automaking rivals for quite some time. The rise of companies like BYD, Zeekr, and NIO has put the auto market on watch in recent years for their low-priced cars loaded with extensive tech and luxury features. However, one company that stood out as the odd one was consumer electronics giant Xiaomi. The company, known for its smartphones and wearables, launched its first car in March 2024-a $30,000 supercar-styled electric sports sedan called the SU7. Throughout 2024, the SU7 became one of China's hot-selling vehicles, delivering more than 135,000 units last year, including one used by Ford CEO Jim Farley, who admitted he "couldn't give it up" during an October 2024 podcast appearance. The success of the SU7 has led the tech giant to go all-in on a high-performance version called the Ultra. Last October, the company published a video showing a stripped-down, race-ready SU7 Ultra prototype lapping the Nürburgring in just 6 minutes and 46.8 seconds, faster than more expensive EVs like the Porsche Taycan Turbo GT and even the multi-million dollar Rimac Nevera. Although Xiaomi recorded 3,680 pre-orders in just 10 minutes when the website opened on October 29 last year, unfortunately, the SU7 Ultra that consumers got was far less racecar-like than the prototype that lapped the Ring. It featured Alcantara-trimmed seats and far less aggressive aerodynamics, including a prominent rear wing, a functional front splitter, and enlarged air intakes for the car's upgraded cooling package. However, in a new video released by Xiaomi on its social media channels, the consumer-grade, production version of the SU7 Ultra shattered Nurburgring lap records by securing the title of fastest production EV to lap the Green Hell, posting a verified lap time of 7:04.957. Although the production SU7 Ultra's lap time is approximately 18 seconds slower than the stripped-down, race-ready prototype, it still outperformed some more prestigious and expensive rivals. The $74,000 SU7 Ultra's flying lap not only surpassed the $231,100 Porsche Taycan Turbo GT, which recorded a time of 7:07.55, but it also beat the multi-million dollar Rimac Nevera, which previously held the production car lap record with a time of 7:05.298. According to Xiaomi, the SU7 Ultra is powered by a trio of electric motors producing 1,526 horsepower. The automaker claims that the SU7 Ultra can go from 0 to 60 in just 1.98 seconds and has a top speed of 217 miles per hour. In the video of the record lap, the SU7 is shown reaching 345 km/h, or 214 mph, on the long straight before the final corner of the Nordschleife. In a translated post on Weibo, Xiaomi founder, chairman, and CEO Lei Jun noted that the car used in the video was piloted by Vincent Radermecker and used the optional "professional track package." According to the Xiaomi website, the optional package includes a smattering of racing-grade goodies from a lion's den of aftermarket suppliers, including Bilstein EVO R coilover shock absorbers specially developed for the Ultra, ENDLESS high-performance brake pads, Pirelli P ZERO fifth-generation high-performance tires, an additional set of Pirelli P ZERO TROFEO RS semi-slick tires, as well as 21-inch U-shaped forged wheel hubs, carbon fiber rear wheel arches, and a carbon fiber roof. In his post on Chinese social media, the Xiaomi figurehead noted that this won't be the last time the SU7 Ultra will post a Ring time. "I believe that this record will be broken in the near future," Jun said, translated from Chinese. "We will stay in the Nürburgring for a long time, and make progress together with the world's top peers in the pinnacle of the global automotive industry!" Although Xiaomi's time is a far cry from the Mercedes-AMG One's record for the fastest production vehicle of 6 minutes and 29 seconds, it really shows that a country that has been written off as making low-quality, disposable things in general has the capability to disrupt, and as what we seen so far, they are doing more than just knocking down doors and walls; they're building a new house on the old lot. It will be very interesting to see if a rebuttal in the form of a potentially faster car will emerge from any of the Western "old guard." Tesla, Porsche, Rimac, the ball is in your court. Copyright 2025 The Arena Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

With retail cyberattacks on the rise, customers find orders blocked and shelves empty
With retail cyberattacks on the rise, customers find orders blocked and shelves empty

Yahoo

time5 hours ago

  • Yahoo

With retail cyberattacks on the rise, customers find orders blocked and shelves empty

NEW YORK (AP) — A string of recent cyberattacks and data breaches involving the systems of major retailers have started affecting shoppers. United Natural Foods, a wholesale distributor that supplies Whole Foods and other grocers, said this week that a breach of its systems was disrupting its ability to fulfill orders — leaving many stores without certain items. In the U.K., consumers could not order from the website of Marks & Spencer for more than six weeks — and found fewer in-store options after hackers targeted the British clothing, home goods and food retailer. A cyberattack on Co-op, a U.K. grocery chain, also led to empty shelves in some stores. Cyberattacks have been on the rise across industries. But infiltrations of corporate technology carry their own set of implications when the target is a consumer-facing business. Beyond potentially halting sales of physical goods, breaches can expose customers' personal data to future phishing or fraud attempts. Here's what you need to know. Cyberattacks are on the rise overall Despite ongoing efforts from organizations to boost their cybersecurity defenses, experts note that cyberattacks continue to increase across the board. In the past year, there's also been an 'uptick in the retail victims" of such attacks, said Cliff Steinhauer, director of information security and engagement at the National Cybersecurity Alliance, a U.S. nonprofit. 'Cyber criminals are moving a little quicker than we are in terms of securing our systems," he said. Ransomware attacks — in which hackers demand a hefty payment to restore hacked systems — account for a growing share of cyber crimes, experts note. And of course, retail isn't the only affected sector. Tracking by NCC Group, a global cybersecurity and software escrow firm, showed that industrial businesses were most often targeted for ransomware attacks in April, followed by companies in the 'consumer discretionary' sector. Attackers know there's a particular impact when going after well-known brands and products that shoppers buy or need every day, experts note. 'Creating that chaos and that panic with consumers puts pressure on the retailer,' Steinhauer said, especially if there's a ransom demand involved. Ade Clewlow, an associate director and senior adviser at the NCC Group, points specifically to food supply chain disruptions. Following the cyberattacks targeting M&S and Co-op, for example, supermarkets in remote areas of the U.K., where inventory already was strained, saw product shortages. 'People were literally going without the basics,' Clewlow said. Personal data is also at risk Along with impacting business operations, cyber breaches may compromise customer data. The information can range from names and email addresses, to more sensitive data like credit card numbers, depending on the scope of the breach. Consumers therefore need to stay alert, according to experts. 'If (consumers have) given their personal information to these retailers, then they just have to be on their guard. Not just immediately, but really going forward," Clewlow said, noting that recipients of the data may try to commit fraud 'downstream.' Fraudsters might send look-alike emails asking a retailer's account holders to change their passwords or promising fake promotions to get customers to click on a sketchy link. A good rule of thumb is to pause before opening anything and to visit the company's recognized website or call an official customer service hotline to verify the email, experts say. It's also best not to reuse the same passwords across multiple websites — because if one platform is breached, that login information could be used to get into other accounts, through a tactic known as 'credential stuffing.' Steinhauer adds that using multifactor authentication, when available, and freezing your credit are also useful for added lines of defense. Which companies have reported recent cybersecurity incidents? A range of consumer-facing companies have reported cybersecurity incidents recently — including breaches that have caused some businesses to halt operations. United Natural Foods, a major distributor for Whole Foods and other grocers across North America, took some of its systems offline after discovering 'unauthorized activity' on June 5. In a securities filing, the company said the incident had impacted its 'ability to fulfill and distribute customer orders." United Natural Foods said in a Wednesday update that it was 'working steadily' to gradually restore the services. Still, that's meant leaner supplies of certain items this week. A Whole Foods spokesperson told The Associated Press via email that it was working to restock shelves as soon as possible. The Amazon-owned grocer's partnership with United Natural Foods currently runs through May 2032. Meanwhile, a security breach detected by Victoria's Secret last month led the popular lingerie seller to shut down its U.S. shopping site for nearly four days, as well as to halt some in-store services. Victoria's Secret later disclosed that its corporate systems also were affected, too, causing the company to delay the release of its first quarter earnings. Several British retailers — M&S, Harrods and Co-op — have all pointed to impacts of recent cyberattacks. The attack targeting M&S, which was first reported around Easter weekend, stopped it from processing online orders and also emptied some store shelves. The company estimated last month that the it would incur costs of 300 million pounds ($400 million) from the attack. But progress towards recovery was shared Tuesday, when M&S announced that some of its online order operations were back — with more set to be added in the coming weeks. Other breaches exposed customer data, with brands like Adidas, The North Face and reportedly Cartier all disclosing that some contact information was compromised recently. In a statement, The North Face said it discovered a 'small-scale credential stuffing attack' on its website in April. The company reported that no credit card data was compromised and said the incident, which impacted 1,500 consumers, was 'quickly contained.' Meanwhile, Adidas disclosed last month that an 'unauthorized external party' obtained some data, which was mostly contact information, through a third-party customer service provider. Whether or not the incidents are connected is unknown. Experts like Steinhauer note that hackers sometimes target a piece of software used by many different companies and organizations. But the range of tactics used could indicate the involvement of different groups. Companies' language around cyberattacks and security breaches also varies — and may depend on what they know when. But many don't immediately or publicly specify whether ransomware was involved. Still, Steinhauer says the likelihood of ransomware attacks is 'pretty high' in today's cybersecurity landscape — and key indicators can include businesses taking their systems offline or delaying financial reporting. Overall, experts say it's important to build up 'cyber hygiene" defenses and preparations across organizations. 'Cyber is a business risk, and it needs to be treated that way," Clewlow said.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store