Unitree subsidiary's robot dog wins Mount Tai climbing race, 3,100 steps in 43:41
Global Times, a Chinese state-run outlet, reports that Beijing Lingyi Technology, a wholly owned subsidiary of Unitree Robotics, won the first gold medal at the inaugural CMG World Robot Mount Tai Climbing Competition in Tai'an, Shandong, on Monday, Nov. 2. Its quadruped won the legged-robot speed race in 43 minutes 41 seconds.
State broadcaster CCTV puts the course at about 3.9 km and more than 3,100 stone steps from Hongmen up to Zhongtianmen, with nearly 90 teams entered. Unitree's IPO prospectus lists Lingyi as a wholly owned subsidiary. The race is run by China Media Group (CMG), the state broadcaster behind CCTV and CGTN, so nearly all coverage so far comes from its own outlets and other Chinese state media.
Not every Unitree machine made it. Chinese outlet Jimu News reports a Unitree G1 humanoid entered by another team, Yongda Zhicheng, overheated midway, withdrew and was carried down on a stretcher. No report names the winning robot's model, and results in the other events are still to come.
Why a mountain matters
Organizers trained robots on a 3.8 km replica of the route at the mountain's foot, and Global Times reports the real path, with worn stone steps and uneven step heights, is harder still. Robotics industry observer Zhong Xiangyun told Global Times before the race that robots like these could take on forest fire patrols, geological hazard monitoring and emergency supply runs in remote mountains.
More on Unitree and robot dogs.
About the footage: Not stated: reports don't say whether the winning robot dog climbed autonomously or was remotely controlled.
The source post
Post by Global Times (Chinese state media) on X.
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Sources
- @globaltimesnews (Global Times, Chinese state-run outlet) on X
- Beijing Daily (state-owned), via CCTV News (Nov. 2): Beijing Lingyi Technology wins Mount Tai legged-robot speed race in 43:41 (Chinese)
- The Paper (state-owned), via CCTV News (Nov. 2): Mount Tai legged-robot speed champion decided (Chinese)
- CGTN (Chinese state broadcaster, part of race organizer CMG): CMG's first World Mountain Robot Challenge in Tai'an
- Jimu News (Hubei state-owned media group), republished on ifeng (Nov. 2): Unitree G1 withdraws after overheating, carried down on a stretcher (Chinese)
- Unitree IPO prospectus: Beijing Lingyi listed as a wholly owned subsidiary (Chinese, PDF)
- Global Times (Chinese state-run outlet, Oct. 26): Inaugural CMG World Robot Mount Tai Competition enters qualifying phase
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Summarized by Servospace from the sources above, drafted with AI help and checked against those sources before publishing. Claims are the companies' or outlets' unless we say otherwise. How we work.