Shares of Unitree, a prominent Chinese humanoid robot maker, surged as much as 629% on their first day of trading Wednesday on the Shanghai Stock Exchange's STAR market. The company's initial public offering raised approximately 6.1 billion yuan, or $904 million, pricing its shares at 150.80 yuan ($22.36) each. As of midday trading, the stock remained up nearly 500%.
Founded in 2016 in Hangzhou, Unitree is a key player in advanced robotics, a field often described as "embodied" artificial intelligence. This sector is central to the ongoing technological competition between China and the United States. China currently holds an advantage in humanoid robot production capacity and manufacturing scalability.
In the past year, approximately 15,000 humanoid robots were shipped globally. Unitree and AGIBOT, another major Chinese manufacturer, each accounted for over 5,000 shipments, significantly outpacing their U.S. counterparts, according to the research group Omdia. Unitree's robots have been showcased in performances, including the China Spring Festival gala, where they demonstrated backflips and martial arts.
However, analysts note that many of these robots are currently used primarily for demonstrations and research rather than widespread practical applications. The true test for companies, both Chinese and American, will be their ability to achieve reliable performance and generate attractive returns on investment in large-scale industrial and commercial deployments, according to Kangyuxiao Li, an analyst at Morningstar.
Unitree plans to utilize the proceeds from its IPO to fund advanced robot research and development, as well as to expand its manufacturing base. The company is the first publicly traded humanoid robotics maker in mainland China, and its IPO is expected to set a benchmark for future valuations of similar companies.
Unitree reported revenue of approximately 1.7 billion yuan (about $250 million) in 2025, primarily from sales of its humanoid and quadruped robots. Over 40% of this revenue originated from international markets. Last year, the U.S. represented about 13% of Unitree's revenue.
This figure predates the U.S. Federal Communications Commission's ban in July on imports of new foreign-made humanoid and quadruped robots, citing national security concerns. Unitree has indicated that this ban, which applies to its newer models, could impact its future sales in the U.S. While existing models may still be sold, the company acknowledges the potential for further U.S. restrictions.