claims its new humanoid robot runs like an elite athlete

For years, when we think about humanoid robots, the image that usually comes to mind is that of machines capable of making impossible jumps or executing perfectly measured stuntslike those popularized by Boston Dynamics with Atlas. At the opposite extreme are designs oriented toward repetitive tasks and controlled environments, like Tesla’s Optimus. Between both imaginaries there is an obvious gap: it is difficult to visualize a robot as an athlete. However, that frontier is beginning to move with proposals that no longer only seek balance or skill, but also performance typical of human athletics.

‘Bolt’, the athlete robot. We are talking about the new humanoid presented by the Chinese company MirrorMe Technology, which claims to have reached a maximum speed of 10 meters per second during tests in real conditions. The company maintains that this is the first time that a full-size robot has achieved that record outside of a laboratory, a milestone that, if confirmed, would shift the conversation from controlled demonstration to performance in environments closer to the physical world. To place the magnitude of the data as a historical reference, Usain Bolt clocked 9.58 seconds in the 100 meters during the 2009 World Cup in Berlin, a mark that at that time defined the ceiling of sprint athletics.

Real running. Achieving high speeds in a humanoid requires solving one of the biggest challenges in bipedal robotics: maintaining dynamic balance while the body endures repeated impacts and constant changes of support. In humans, this coordination between perception, motor control and response occurs almost automatically, but in a machine it requires redesigning joints, optimizing energy delivery and fine-tuning stability in real time. MirrorMe maintains that the Bolt incorporates new joint configurations and a power system optimized to approximate human movement patterns.

A job that started years ago. The company had already attracted attention with Black Panther IIa research-oriented robot that traveled 100 meters in 13.17 seconds during a television broadcast in China. In that same demonstration its top speed was around 9.7 meters per second. Bolt thus appears as the next logical step in that search for ever-increasing physical performance.

Robots as athletes. Bolt’s advance also fits into a broader context in which China is exploring the athletic dimension of humanoid robotics. Public demonstrations of robots have appeared in recent years capable of fighting in disciplines such as kickboxingdeveloped by companies such as Unitree Robotics, in addition to viral tournaments that serve as a showcase to measure agility, balance and coordination. This ecosystem suggests that physical performance is beginning to become a relevant metric beyond pure research.

The future. Beyond the record that the company says it has achieved, MirrorMe imagines specific applications for this type of high-performance humanoids. Among them, he mentions the possibility of them acting as training partners for human athletes, an idea that points both to professional sports and to research in biomechanics and movement. However, as with many announcements in advanced robotics, the true scope will depend on sustained testing over time and real-world usage scenarios.

Images | MirrorMe

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