Chinese robotics giant Unitree soars in stock market debut
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The world’s biggest humanoid robot maker Unitree Robotics made its stock market debut in Shanghai on Wednesday, with its shares soaring by more than 600%
In the highly anticipated initial public offering (IPO), the firm’s shares opened at 1,100 yuan (£120.60; $163.12), well above the 150.8 yuan offer price
The listing on the tech-focused Star Market – which is widely known as China’s Nasdaq – marks a milestone for Beijing’s ambitious plans for the country’s robotics industry
It comes as the US and China are locked in a battle to dominate the global market for robots and artificial intelligence (AI) models that power them
Robots like automated industrial equipment and smart vacuum cleaners are already widely used in factories, warehouses and homes
Now, the humanoid robotics industry is attracting huge amounts of investment as major companies – including Tesla, BYD and Amazon – are developing two-legged machines capable of performing tasks usually carried out by people
What is Unitree?
Founded in 2016, Unitree has become a robotics industry leader, selling a wide range of devices from sensors and automated arms to four-legged and human-like machines
For several years, it has been a fierce rival to developers in the US as it rolled out robots with similar features but at lower prices
The company – which plays a key role in Beijing’s ambitions to be a global leader in cutting-edge technologies – is based in Hangzhou, in eastern China
The region is home to a so-called golden cluster zone of robotics firms, which have been boosted by huge government investments
That support helped drive a more than threefold increase in the number of Chinese robotics firms between 2020 and 2024, according to state-run China Daily
Robots are also seen as a potential solution to challenges posed by China’s ageing population, which is expected to lead to a shortage of workers to support the economy’s physically demanding manufacturing base an associate professor at the University of Bath
Beijing considers the robotics sector a “strategic priority” in its pursuit of leadership in advanced technology, she said
“Robots are where AI leaves the screen and enters the economy” in factories, hospitals and, potentially, the home, Qin added
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US robots tend to have more user-friendly software but it is difficult to ignore the lower prices offered by Chinese manufacturers, said Harold Soh, a researcher from the National University of Singapore
Unitree’s robot dogs start at $2,700, a fraction of the roughly $70,000 price tag for Boston Dynamics’ four-legged device, Spot
“They’re not exactly comparable because some of Unitree’s dogs are much smaller,” Soh said. “But the price is a big difference.”
Unitree has been selling humanoid robots since 2023, with its $13,500 child-sized G1 model hitting the market the following year
Meanwhile, major US rivals – including Elon Musk’s Tesla – have yet to start delivering rival products
CCTV
The G1, along with other Unitree robots have been at the centre of a huge marketing push ahead of the firm’s IPO
This week, its machines are competing in the 2026 World Humanoid Robot Games in Beijing. The event features hundreds of teams competing in events such as running and football as well as less sporty challenges like box opening and sorting library books
Earlier this year, Unitree’s robots caught the eye of the public and researchers when its G1 robots put on a display of martial arts moves during China’s Spring Festival Gala
The event, broadcast on state TV in February, showed the robots performing a “full range of motions, live on stage, in a way we’d never seen before,” said robotics researcher David Hsu
“It was an indication of a rise of an industry,” Hsu added
A bellwether for robotics firms?
Unitree’s market debut is seen by some experts as a gauge of investor appetite for the fast-growing humanoid robotics sector
The listing has given the public a rare chance to invest in a humanoid robotics company and could set a benchmark for other manufacturers, said Jack Pearson from investment firm RoboStrategy
The listing also marks a “turning point” for China’s robotics industry, as Unitree’s success comes even as the US is curbing imports of foreign-made robots, Pearson said
Unitree’s IPO comes almost three years after smaller Chinese rival UBTech Robotics listed on the Hong Kong stock market
In July this year, UBTech drew global attention when it unveiled what Chinese state media described as a “life-sized, hyper-realistic humanoid robot designed as a companion that offers users emotional support and everyday interaction.”
More robot makers, including Leju Robotics and AgiBot, are expected to follow UBTech and Unitree with stock market listings in the coming months
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But the optimism around the industry comes as some experts have voiced doubts over demand for robots for uses outside industrial and commercial settings
Robots are still years away from working effectively in homes, Soh said
Developers need to address issues like longer battery life, privacy safeguards and reliabilty, he said
Initially, the market will be for robots being used in places like factories and hospitals, he added
China-US tech rivalry
Robots and AI have become the latest flashpoint in the rivalry between the US and China, as both nations view them as strategically important industries
US President Donald Trump’s administration said in July that it would ban new Chinese-made humanoid and quadruped robots over national security concerns and protecting US manufacturing
Beijing rejected the claim, accusing Washington of “politicising” trade issues
The White House has also set tough restrictions on other Chinese technology – including AI models, electric cars, semiconductors and drones
China’s dominance of the robotics industry highlights a broader issue faced by Washington as Chinese firms become more “deeply embedded” in global manufacturing, said Christine Wan from the Peterson Institute for International Economics
“Other countries may be reluctant to sharply reduce their reliance on Chinese suppliers if doing so would significantly disrupt domestic manufacturing,” Wan said
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So far, Western robots have not made the same impact on factory floors or in the consumer market
Boston Dynamics, a major US robotics developer, has said it will roll out human-like machines in car maker Hyundai’s factories in two years’ time. The South Korean firm bought a majority stake in Boston Dynamics in 2021
Other US firms, like Amazon and Tesla, have also announced plans to use humanoid robots in their operations
Earlier this year, Musk’s firm announced that it would use its manufacturing plant in California that made Model S and X cars toproduce its line of Optimus humanoid robots
Amazon, which tested the use of humanoid robots in its warehouses in 2023, told the BBC it has completed a pilot scheme for the technology and is continuing its research into next-generation robotics
The BBC has also contacted Tesla and Boston Dynamics for comment on their humanoid robot plans
One thing is clear, said Hsu, the US has lost the lead on robotics that it had a decade ago
“We no longer hear about American robotics companies in the news. It’s the Chinese robot companies that are making news today,” he added
“They have replaced America as the cool kids on the block.”
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