2026 World Humanoid Robot Games opens with 666 teams, 2,056 droids

The second World Humanoid Robot Games opened in Beijing on Saturday, with the participation of 666 teams and 2,056 robots from 16 countries.

The event, running through August 26, features 51 competitions and more than 1,300 matches.

The number of teams is up 138 percent from the inaugural Games in 2025.

At a 100-meter preliminary race in the opening event, Team Tianzhuo clocked 9.39 seconds to take the first place in a time well ahead of the previous Games' record and the fastest human Usain Bolt's 9.58 world record.

Displaced farming families are returning to their homeland in Gaza City, restoring fields and growing food again, though challenges like poor farming conditions and lack of supplies remain.

In parts of Gaza, farmland damaged during Israel's war on the enclave is slowly coming back to life.

Fresh vegetables are being harvested again from farmland in Gaza City's Al-Zaitoun neighborhood.

For the Al-Dahdouh family, these crops mark the return of their land to life.

The challenges have been immense. Nearly three years of war have left much of Gaza's farmland damaged or bulldozed, making the return to farming a difficult task for families trying to start again.

"When we returned after being displaced, the land was covered with piles of rubble and debris and was difficult to access. Everyone in the family worked together to rehabilitate it for farming. Thankfully, we were finally able to cultivate it again," said Wajiha Al-Dahdouh, a Palestinian farmer.

Rebuilding livelihoods and restoring a sense of normal life remains difficult after the three years of war, repeated displacement and the loss of income for many families.

"We can't afford to hire workers to help us with farming because of the high costs. We also face serious difficulties securing water for irrigation and pesticides. It has been a huge burden on us," said Iman Al-Dahdouh, another Palestinian farmer.

The Al-Dahdouh family is among around 350 farming families supported by United Nations Development Program (UNDP) with Relief Housing Units and farming assistance.

Around 1,100 families are expected to benefit in total.

"For the last three years, it has been total destruction, and people have had to leave their homelands. The families have been displaced multiple times to various locations in the midland south area of the Gaza Strip. What you see here now is life returning to the neighborhood, and UNDP supports these families through providing dignified shelters and housing solutions through what we call relief housing units," said Margunn Indreboe Alshaikh, deputy special representative of UNDP Palestine.

The initiative is part of UNDP's Neighbourhood Approach, combining housing with basic services and livelihood support.