Unitree's G1 humanoid robots performe a synchronized martial arts demonstration in front of the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests at the Temple of Heaven in Beijing. Photo: Screenshot of Unitree's video clip

China's robotics companies are experiencing a notable listing boom. Chinese humanoid robot maker Unitree Robotics won approval from the Shanghai Stock Exchange's listing committee on Monday for its planned STAR Market initial public offering (IPO). It took just 73 days from application acceptance to review approval, making it a landmark example this year of China's capital market supporting hard-tech innovation. This is far from an isolated case. 

Data show that among the companies currently waiting to list on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, 46 are robotics-related firms, accounting for more than 10 percent of all applicants. Chinese robotics companies are racing into the capital market, a development of great significance. 

Some market analysts believe that China's humanoid robotics industry has reached a "dawn moment," moving from technological breakthroughs toward large-scale commercialization.

From performing the Yangko dance and twirling handkerchiefs to staging martial arts demonstrations, China's humanoid robots have stepped out of the laboratory and into the spotlight before hundreds of millions of viewers during two consecutive Spring Festival Gala broadcasts, making Unitree Robotics a household name. This time, Unitree Robotics has passed the STAR Market listing review at lightning speed, sending three clear signals.

First, China has gained an early lead in the globally competitive field of embodied intelligence. The rapid growth of China's humanoid robotics industry is both visible and tangible. China now has more than 140 humanoid robot manufacturers, with annual shipments reaching 14,400 units. Eight out of every 10 humanoid robots produced worldwide come from China. 

Not long ago, at the humanoid robot half-marathon in Beijing's E-Town, the winning robot achieved a speed that surpassed the human half-marathon world record, demonstrating the country's hard-core technological capabilities. 

In 2025, Unitree Robotics recorded a 335 percent year-on-year increase in revenue, a performance that drew strong attention from major international media outlets including Reuters. The rush of domestic robotics companies toward the capital market marks the beginning of a new phase of large-scale growth and reflects China's systemic industrial advantages in embodied intelligence. As Bloomberg noted, "the deep pipeline of robotics IPOs mirrors the fast rise of China's AI ecosystem."

Second, it demonstrates the capital market's strong commitment to supporting technological self-reliance and self-strengthening. The growing number of robotics companies entering the capital market reflects the effective combination of top-level national planning and targeted industrial policy support. The concept of "embodied intelligence" was included in China's Government Work Report for the first time in 2025, while the outline of the 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-30) has laid out a forward-looking strategy for future industries, identifying embodied intelligence as a key new driver of economic growth. Unitree Robotics' rapid IPO approval highlights the growing capacity of China's capital market to serve innovation-driven enterprises, allowing companies with genuine core technologies to seize opportunities for commercialization timely. 

This case sets a benchmark for the industry and sends a clear message: Technology enterprises that focus on core innovation and achieve commercial breakthroughs will receive strong support from the capital market.

Third, a virtuous cycle is taking shape between "patient capital" and the capital market. Robotics companies are characterized by high R&D spending and long development cycles, requiring large-scale, long-term capital support to weather market fluctuations, achieve technological breakthroughs, and build industrial momentum. 

At its core, capital market support for the robotics industry is support for the technological foundations, ecosystem building, and application expansion of the industries of the future. At present, the coordinated efforts of Chinese mainland and Hong Kong capital markets not only help upgrade the robotics industry but also guide social capital toward fostering new quality productive forces.

Globally, capital is flowing into the robotics sector with unprecedented enthusiasm, creating a mutually reinforcing dynamic alongside the rapid expansion of Chinese robotics companies. Investment in technological innovation and industrial capability building will accelerate the transition of embodied intelligence from laboratory research to large-scale application and commercialization. 

At the same time, the stringent disclosure and regulatory requirements of public markets encourage companies to improve corporate governance, enhance financial transparency, and strengthen long-term development strategies. Notably, on the same day that Unitree Robotics received its IPO approval, Nvidia announced a partnership with the company to launch an open humanoid robot reference design of Unitree's H2 robots. This highlights how outstanding Chinese robotics firms can also stimulate global innovation and contribute to the optimization of international industrial and supply chains.

Recently, a report by Morgan Stanley noted that China's humanoid robotics industry is "much like the early identification of electric vehicles as a growth driver a decade ago." The report predicts that humanoid robots could be "the next key drivers of China's export machinery over the coming five to 10 years." 

With support from capital markets and the discipline of standardized regulation, China's rapidly growing robotics industry is well positioned to create the next major growth engine for the development of new quality productive forces.