A humanoid robot named Flash smashed the human-held world record during recent a half-marathon race held in Beijing. Both humans and robots ran side by side in the event, separated for safety reasons.

The winning robot ran over 13 miles in just 50 minutes and 26 seconds, beating the human world-record holder Jacob Kiplimo by nearly seven minutes, with an average speed of less than four minutes per mile.

This is a major improvement from last year's humanoid half-marathon, where the winning robot took nearly three hours to run the same distance.

The winning robot (as well as the second and third place humanoids) were made by Chinese smartphone manufacturer Honor, which has made a significant pivot into robotics this year, showing off a robot phone and humanoid robot at this year's Mobile World Congress.

This could be an indicator that other smartphone companies may soon enter the robotics market. Apple is reportedly developing a home robot, and the latest five-year-plan released by the Chinese government highlights humanoid robot development as a major priority.

Smartphones and robots share many similar components: a computer, cameras, sensors. Honor told CNET in a statement that its work on "thermal management, lightweight structures, and hardware reliability within the consumer electronics sector provides a robust foundation for stable motion of its humanoid robots. Moving forward, Honor robots will focus on the consumer market."

Watch this: From Record-Smashing Robot Runners to Consumer Robotics

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To see the record-breaking robot in action, check out the video in this article.

As OpenAI faces a major legal threat from Elon Musk over its future, the company behind ChatGPT is reportedly pressing ahead with expanded hardware ambitions.

The company has previously been linked to a possible release of AI earbuds later this year or early 2027, but now it's said to be working on a smartphone in partnership with component-makers MediaTek, Qualcomm and Luxshare. Industry analyst Ming-Chi Kuo reported on X over the weekend that MediaTek and Qualcomm would help design a smartphone chip for the device, while Luxshare would act as a co-design and manufacturing partner. 

Most premium Android phones coming out in 2026 will use either Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 or MediaTek's Dimensity 9500 chips, so it makes sense for OpenAI to tap the companies making processors for most of the top-end phones that come out every year. 

For years, both MediaTek and Qualcomm have envisioned AI agents as the future of how people will use their phones, handling tasks across multiple apps for you. AI agents would be at the core of OpenAI's smartphone, Kuo said, effectively eliminating the need for separate apps. 

"Users are not trying to use a pile of apps," Kuo said. "They are trying to get tasks done and fulfill needs through the phone. This fundamentally changes how people think about smartphones." 

OpenAI's hardware ambitions have included a high-profile partnership with former Apple designer Jony Ive. One recent rumor was that the devices could include one worn in the ear, but that OpenAI could have as many as five different devices ready by the end of 2028.

At the same time, OpenAI has been reportedly trying to cut down on so-called "side quests," axing its Sora video generator and putting a planned ChatGPT "adult mode" on hiatus in favor of a more productivity-focused "super app" said to be built around the Codex coding tool.

Read also: ChatGPT Images 2: Why OpenAI Built a New Image Model After Killing Sora

Kuo reported that specifications and suppliers for the rumored smartphone are expected to be done by the end of the year or the first quarter of 2027, with production expected in 2028.

OpenAI did not immediately respond to a request for comment. 

(Disclosure: Ziff Davis, CNET's parent company, in April 2025 filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights in training and operating its AI systems.)

Motorola opened pre-orders in the UK for its upcoming Razr Fold two-panel phone, but we don't yet know what it will cost in the US. If we apply a direct currency conversion, though, it could be exceptionally expensive.

It's listed at £1,800 for the lily white and blackened blue models with 16GB of memory and 512GB of storage; there are no other storage options. It also includes the Moto Pen Ultra accessory. Orders will be shipped on May 6.

Additionally, through this preorder form, Motorola is offering a free Moto Watch and a pair of Moto Buds Loop, as well as a £220 discount applied at checkout through May 3, bringing the price down to £1,580.

That £1,800 base price converts to around $2,440 in the US, which seems pretty steep and may not be what it ends up costing. It's important to note that UK prices include a 20% sales tax by default, so a more realistic equivalent would be $1,955. (The same math applied to the £1,580 preorder price works out to just over $1,700.)

To compare, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 with the same 512GB of storage starts at £2,000 in the UK, but is currently available from Samsung in the US for $1,800, down from $2,200. The Google Pixel 10 Fold, also with 512GB, goes for £1,869 in the UK. At Google's US online store, it currently costs $1,619.

With memory prices rising due to a worldwide shortage of components used to make RAM, it's hard to predict what the Razr Fold will cost in the US.

However, there's clearly an appetite for expensive foldable phones, as shown by the $2,900 Samsung Galaxy Z TriFold that sold out in minutes and stopped being offered for sale after three months (it's due to return soon). But it's more likely that the Razr Fold will be priced comparatively to the other two-panel folding phones.

We got our first hands-on with the book-style foldable Razr at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona in January. 

"In my hand, the Razr Fold felt similar to the Z Fold 7 in terms of its sleekness," wrote CNET Senior Reporter Abrar Al-Heeti. "The incremental size-up compared with Samsung's and Google's foldables is hardly noticeable, but it should place it safely within their orbit."

See also: If you're looking for a new phone, be sure you're pairing it with a mobile plan that works best for you.

There's uncertainty about OnePlus' future in the UK and Europe, but it's full steam ahead in Asia for now. The Chinese-based tech company said Monday in a post on X that it will launch two new phones -- the Nord CE6 and Nord CE6 Lite -- in India on May 7. OnePlus didn't say when the phones would be available in the US and other markets and didn't say how much they would cost.

That's unfortunate, as both Nord phones build on the brand's recent set of phones with large-capacity batteries. But whereas last year's flagship OnePlus 15 has a 7,300-mAh cell, the Nord CE6 has a massive 8,000 mAh, which should last for two and a half days on a full charge, according to the phone's listing. While it doesn't share how fast the phone's wired or wireless charging is, it does note that the Nord CE6 has 27-watt reverse charging to donate battery charge to other devices. The Nord CE6 Lite, presumably the cheaper version, has a 7,000-mAh battery.

The Nord CE6 and CE6 Lite, visible in a listing on Amazon in India, don't have prices yet, but they do have a launch date of May 7.

The OnePlus Nord CE6 is powered by a Snapdragon 7s Gen 4 system on a chip alongside a Touch Reflex chip. The Nord CE6 has a 1.5K AMOLED display with a 144Hz refresh rate that reaches up to 1,800 nits of peak brightness. The cheaper Nord CE6 Lite includes a MediaTek Dimensity 7400 Apex chipset, and its screen also has a 144Hz refresh rate.

The Nord CE6 will be available in three colors -- fresh blue, lunar pearl and pitch black -- while the Nord CE6 Lite will have two options: vivid mint and hyper black.

The announcements come amid uncertainty about OnePlus' status in non-Asian markets. Android Authority reported that several high-level employees in the UK and Europe have recently left the company, which is reportedly "evaluating its regional roadmap and product strategy." There were also rumors that the company might shut down its operations in the UK and Europe. OnePlus is owned by Chinese conglomerate BKK Electronics, which also owns phone brand Oppo.

A representative for OnePlus did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

We loved the OnePlus 15's battery

Earlier this year, CNET revealed its picks for the best battery life among phones, after rigorous testing of 35 models. The iPhone 17 Pro Max was our winner, and the iPhone 17 and OnePlus 15 were both tied for second place.

CNET also compared the OnePlus 15 and OnePlus 15R, with the choice basically coming down to whether you want a bit more premium (at a higher price) or a decent version for $100 to $200 less.

Austin Evans, a tech tester with 5.76 million subscribers to his YouTube channel, said he's "really happy" that the Nord CE6 and Nord CE6 Lite phones are at least launching in India for now.

"I like OnePlus, they've been a disruptive force for years and generally provide pretty good value," Evans said. "That being said, I'm wary of how ironclad their commitment to the US market will be. Everything I've heard suggests they're narrowing scope significantly to focus on growth markets like India. Fair play, but I'm still a bit concerned about the long-term plans for the company."