GMO AI & Robotics Commerce Launches 'GMO Robots': World's First Project to Reproduce Japan's Best Ekiden Running in a Humanoid Robot via Fully Autonomous Operation
GMO AI & Robotics Commerce has launched the 'GMO Robots' project, aiming to develop a humanoid robot that completely autonomously reproduces the running motions of top Japanese track and field athletes using data from the championship-winning GMO Internet Group Athletics Club.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: April 3, 2026 at 00:45
- 🔍 Collected: April 2, 2026 at 19:36
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: April 21, 2026 at 04:53 (441h 17m after Collected)
GMO AI & Robotics Commerce Inc. (President: Tomohiro Uchida, hereafter GMO AIR), which handles the social implementation of AI and robotics, has launched the 'GMO Internet Group Athletics Club - GMO Robots' (hereafter GMO Robots) demonstration experiment project. This project reproduces human running motions through fully autonomous driving utilizing the running data of top-level Japanese track and field athletes, and held an inaugural press conference on April 2, 2026.
In this project, we will incorporate the running data of athletes from the GMO Internet Group Athletics Club, who won the 2026 New Year Ekiden with a new tournament record (*1), into a humanoid robot to conduct technical demonstrations aimed at sophistication. It is the world's first (*2) attempt to reproduce human running through fully autonomous operation.
Mastering basic movements such as 'running' in robots is a crucial technological element that forms the foundation for all kinds of labor and tasks. If running technology is established, it will become possible to apply it to complex movements such as carrying objects, climbing stairs, and avoiding obstacles, greatly expanding the scope of practical application. Through this initiative, we will accelerate the social implementation of humanoid robots.
Furthermore, we aim to win the world championship in athletics with a humanoid robot.
(*1) 'GMO Internet Group Athletics Club, Long-awaited Corporate Ekiden Japan Champions!' January 1, 2026 https://group.gmo/news/article/9858/
(*2) In-house research
[What is 'GMO Robots']
This project is promoted in collaboration with the GMO Internet Group Athletics Club, which achieved a tournament-record victory at the New Year Ekiden. By acquiring and analyzing the running motion data (*3) of the athletes who won the New Year Ekiden and using AI technologies such as reinforcement learning, we will develop a humanoid robot that runs like a top athlete.
In reinforcement learning, the quality of training data is just as important as the quantity. Ekiden runners are suitable as reference data for robots because they can stably maintain a refined running form. Therefore, precisely because it is the GMO Internet Group with Japan's best Ekiden team, it is possible to acquire high-quality data and realize a humanoid robot that runs like a top athlete.
Furthermore, the insights gained in the robot development process will be fed back to the athletes, helping to improve their form and prevent injuries, thereby contributing to the improvement of the athletes' performance. We will build a bidirectional development model where robot development and sports science mutually return value to each other.
(*3) Data that digitizes and records the athletes' running motions
In this project, we will incorporate the running data of athletes from the GMO Internet Group Athletics Club, who won the 2026 New Year Ekiden with a new tournament record (*1), into a humanoid robot to conduct technical demonstrations aimed at sophistication. It is the world's first (*2) attempt to reproduce human running through fully autonomous operation.
Mastering basic movements such as 'running' in robots is a crucial technological element that forms the foundation for all kinds of labor and tasks. If running technology is established, it will become possible to apply it to complex movements such as carrying objects, climbing stairs, and avoiding obstacles, greatly expanding the scope of practical application. Through this initiative, we will accelerate the social implementation of humanoid robots.
Furthermore, we aim to win the world championship in athletics with a humanoid robot.
(*1) 'GMO Internet Group Athletics Club, Long-awaited Corporate Ekiden Japan Champions!' January 1, 2026 https://group.gmo/news/article/9858/
(*2) In-house research
[What is 'GMO Robots']
This project is promoted in collaboration with the GMO Internet Group Athletics Club, which achieved a tournament-record victory at the New Year Ekiden. By acquiring and analyzing the running motion data (*3) of the athletes who won the New Year Ekiden and using AI technologies such as reinforcement learning, we will develop a humanoid robot that runs like a top athlete.
In reinforcement learning, the quality of training data is just as important as the quantity. Ekiden runners are suitable as reference data for robots because they can stably maintain a refined running form. Therefore, precisely because it is the GMO Internet Group with Japan's best Ekiden team, it is possible to acquire high-quality data and realize a humanoid robot that runs like a top athlete.
Furthermore, the insights gained in the robot development process will be fed back to the athletes, helping to improve their form and prevent injuries, thereby contributing to the improvement of the athletes' performance. We will build a bidirectional development model where robot development and sports science mutually return value to each other.
(*3) Data that digitizes and records the athletes' running motions