Shares in China's leading humanoid robot maker, Unitree, climbed sharply on Wednesday in its public stock trading debut in Shanghai, soaring above 600% at one point before closing lower.
Unitree's share was up as much as 629%, in the latest highlight of investor optimism over China's technological advances. It also marked a major milestone for the nation’s robotics industry, which has emerged as a central front in the technology rivalry between China and the U.S.
Unitree who competes with Hyundai Motor Group-owned Boston Dynamics and Tesla, has drawn attention globally for its robots that run, dance and perform martial arts.
A symbol of national pride for China and one of the world's biggest producers of humanoid and quadruped robots. It is backed by influential firms, both private-sector tech giants and state-run.
Unlike many of its peers, the company is already profitable despite having relatively few robots deployed in commercial applications. While it is not the first Chinese humanoid robot maker to go public, its listing is expected to pave the way for a wave of domestic rivals preparing to enter the market.
"It is a top-tier player, and its uniqueness commands premiums," said Yan Kai, a venture capitalist and partner at Ivy Capital in Shanghai.
"Its price is dictated by political and economic considerations, rather than valuation models."
The stock closed the morning session at 883.87 yuan ($131) on Shanghai’s tech-focused STAR Market, well above its initial public offering (IPO) price of 150.8 yuan ($22.37) and giving the company a market value of about $50 billion.
The surge was far above the average first-day gain of 279% for new Chinese listings so far this year. The strong debut came as China’s benchmark indexes fell about 2%, with technology stocks hit by heavy selling.
Unitree’s debut lines up with the start of the World Robot Conference in Beijing, where numerous companies, the vast majority Chinese, will unveil new products and showcase progress that Beijing hopes can help offset the labor gap created by the country’s aging population and shrinking workforce.
According to William Xin, chairperson of Spring Mountain Pu Jiang Investment Management, the strength of Unitree’s IPO reinforces the edge it already has as a first-mover, which should help it stay afloat in a sector where the majority of competitors are still unprofitable.
"At this early stage of competition, whoever gets listed and has visibility can grab the resources and have staying power,” he said.
As Chinese investors rushed to buy the stock, some analysts have warned that much of Unitree’s sales so far have been one-time purchases, with relatively few robots deployed for commercial use. Many of the company’s products have instead been sold to universities and research institutions.
Moreover, in July, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) banned imports of future models of foreign-made humanoid and quadruped robots, including those from Unitree, citing national security concerns.
The restriction effectively shuts Unitree out of a major market and highlights how Chinese companies have expanded rapidly in strategically important industries, sometimes building on technology initially developed in the United States.
Unitree based the designs of its most successful robotic dogs on research funded by the U.S. military, according to a former U.S. defense technology official and three researchers involved in the project.
The U.S. Army made the research publicly available to encourage advances in robotics, a common practice, and Unitree did not improperly obtain or use the technology.
In June, the Pentagon also placed Unitree on a list of Chinese companies it considers part of the country’s military-industrial base, describing the company as a “contributor to the Chinese defense industrial base.” The designation is not a sanction but restricts the U.S. military’s future use of Unitree technology. Unitree has said its robots are designed for civilian purposes.
About 10% of Unitree’s shares were sold in the IPO, raising roughly $900 million, while founder Wang Xingxing retains a stake of about 20%. The strong debut has pushed the value of his holdings to more than $12 billion on paper.
The startup is backed by several of China’s major technology companies, including Tencent, Alibaba and DeepSeek.
Wang was also among technology executives given a front-row seat at a summit hosted by Chinese President Xi Jinping early last year.
At least six Chinese humanoid robotics companies are preparing to go public.
Deep Robotics and Leju Robotics have applied to list on mainland Chinese exchanges, while Mech-Mind Robotics, X Square Robot and AgiBot are seeking listings in Hong Kong.
Advanced robotics, often referred to as "embodied" artificial intelligence, is a key sector in the heated technology rivalry between China and the U.S.
China leads the U.S. in terms of production capacity of humanoid robots and the ability to scale up manufacturing.
Last year, of the roughly 15,000 humanoid robots shipped globally, Unitree and AGIBOT, another major Chinese humanoid robot maker, each shipped more than 5,000, according to technology research and advisory group Omdia, way ahead of their U.S. counterparts.
For the first half of 2026, Omdia's estimates put Chinese humanoid robot makers' total global shipments at around 18,500 units.
