The humanoid robotics sector surged forward this weekend with groundbreaking demonstrations of speed, strength, and innovative designs, underscoring a maturing wave of hardware advancements poised for real-world industry deployments. Brett Adcock, founder and CEO of Figure AI, set the pace by revealing that their Figure 03 humanoid achieved a blistering peak speed of 2.9 m/s—or 6.5 mph, equivalent to a 9:15 mile pace, showcasing leaps in locomotion, balance, and dynamic dexterity essential for warehouse and factory operations. Meanwhile, Chinese innovators like EngineAI and Midea pushed boundaries with robust leg power capable of delivering kicks that test human limits and multi-armed designs hinting at efficiency gains in industrial tasks.

Robotics thought leader Tuo Liu amplified the buzz, highlighting over 75 global humanoid companies fueling this revolution while noting automotive giants’ accelerating entry into the fray, leveraging manufacturing prowess for humanoid hardware. Practical tests, from wheeled humanoids’ surprising flexibility by Spirit AI Robotics to EngineAI’s robot directing traffic, signal a shift from prototypes to deployable systems. Midea’s official unveil of the Miro U "super humanoid" further cements appliance manufacturers as dark horses, blending home tech expertise with cutting-edge robotics.

"These 75+ humanoid companies around the world really show just how massive this humanoid robotics wave is. Again, I’m just excited and grateful to be alive to witness what might be the biggest tech revolution in human history. It’s just the beginning, buckle up please."

—Tuo Liu

Leading the charge in raw athleticism, Figure AI’s Figure 03 robot dashed to impressive running speeds that rival casual joggers, with Brett Adcock touting the feat as a milestone in humanoid locomotion hardware. This isn’t just speed—it’s a testament to integrated advances in balance, actuators, and real-time control, drawing praise for its "natural athleticism" in replies and positioning Figure AI for high-demand environments like logistics hubs where agility trumps wheels.

Not to be outdone, EngineAI flexed serious hardware muscle in a viral stunt where their CEO survived a powerful chest kick from the Terminator-inspired T800 humanoid, posted by TheHumanoidHub. The demonstration highlighted leg strength, structural integrity, and balance recovery—critical for factories enduring impacts—while sparking debates on robot-versus-human durability. Taking it to the streets, EngineAI’s bot proved its mettle as a traffic assistant, navigating outdoor chaos with reliable dexterity, a step toward public safety deployments that demand weatherproof hardware and sustained operation.

Innovation took a multi-limbed turn with Midea, whose six-armed humanoid prototype wowed observers for its potential efficiency in parallel tasks, as noted by Tuo Liu:

"I know six-armed humanoids could be very efficient, but it’s still wild to see one actually built by Midea. That said, I still believe major home appliance companies will do well in the wheeled humanoid competition."

Midea doubled down by officially naming their advanced bot Miro U, complete with sleek imagery revealing refined actuators and form factors suited for versatile industrial roles.

Meanwhile, mobility paradigms evolved with wheeled humanoids from Spirit AI Robotics exhibiting bipedal-like flexibility in maneuvers that blend wheel speed with arm dexterity, challenging assumptions about form factors for dynamic warehouses.

The bigger picture emerged in Tuo Liu’s mapping of the ecosystem: an infographic cataloging 75+ humanoid firms worldwide, from startups to giants, illustrates explosive growth. This scale is amplified by automotive companies’ pattern of entry, bringing precision manufacturing and autonomy hardware to humanoid development, accelerating deployments across sectors.

This flurry of demos—from Figure 03’s sprints and T800’s kicks to Miro U’s reveal and the 75+ company boom—heralds humanoid robotics entering a deployment-ready era, where hardware dexterity and robustness finally match industrial needs. With cross-industry influx from Midea’s appliance realm and automotive powerhouses, expect faster iterations, cost reductions, and pilots in warehouses, traffic control, and beyond, transforming labor markets as these bots buckle down for the long haul. The revolution, as Tuo Liu urges, is just beginning.