China’s Unitree reported $7 billion IPO valuation heats up humanoid robot race

Unitree Robotics, 1 of China's hottest exertion startups, is readying an archetypal nationalist offering that could worth the institution astatine up to 50 cardinal yuan ($7 billion), and assistance found itself arsenic a planetary person successful humanoid robots. 

So-called humanoid robots are artificial intelligence-powered machines designed to lucifer humans successful quality and movement, with applications successful the concern and work sectors.

Zhejiang-based Unitree has established itself arsenic a person successful China's humanoid robot space, and its listing plans could marque it 1 of the archetypal companies specializing successful the exertion to spell public.

The company's caller valuation target, archetypal reported by Reuters, citing 2 radical with cognition of the plans, would people a crisp leap from its latest fundraising round reported on successful June. At the time, the institution had attracted large backers specified arsenic Geely, Alibaba and Tencent.

Unitree, successful a station connected its X relationship connected Aug. 27, outlined its plans to IPO, saying that it was actively advancing listing preparations and was expecting to taxable the exertion documents successful the 4th fourth of the year.

It remains unclear however overmuch Unitree is seeking to rise successful the IPO. The institution precocious told section Chinese media that it's been profitable since 2020 and present has revenues exceeding 1 cardinal Chinese yuan ($140.35 million).

Unitree did not respond to CNBC's petition for comment.

An offering of this size would beryllium 1 of the largest Chinese tech listings successful caller years. The mainland banal marketplace has been gradually reviving pursuing years of tightened regulatory scrutiny and volatility.

Unitree's listing program besides comes arsenic Beijing steps up efforts to enactment its section champions successful artificial intelligence-related industries. Its founder, Wang Xingxing, was reportedly among a radical of tech leaders who attended a uncommon gathering with Chinese President Xi Jinping earlier this year.

In 2023, China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology issued guidelines for humanoid robots, calling for "production astatine scale" by 2025.

Unitree is portion of a question of Chinese humanoid robot companies, including Agibot, besides known arsenic Zhiyuan Robotics and Galbot, a Beijing-based robotics start-up backed by the Hong Kong government.

These companies person been rushing to get their robots deployed successful factories crossed China. EV makers similar BYD and Geely person already reportedly deployed immoderate of Unitree's humanoid robots astatine their accumulation lines.

Meanwhile, Chinese humanoid robots person taken halfway signifier successful caller publicized events specified arsenic the World Robot Conference and World Humanoid Robot Games. 

As these companies unreserved to get their robots deployed successful factories crossed China, an IPO could assistance Unitree found itself arsenic China's starring steadfast successful humanoid robots, according to Lian Jye Su, main expert astatine autarkic expert and consultancy steadfast Omdia. 

"Unitree is 1 of the world's starring vendors successful mobile robots and it volition apt beryllium a apical subordinate successful the humanoid robotics sector," helium said. 

According to estimates from Omdia, a full of 15,000 units are expected to beryllium shipped this year, with Unitree's stock 2nd lone to its home rival Agibot. 

Competition is besides heating up internationally. The U.S. has seen its ain burgeoning humanoid robot players, specified arsenic Boston Dynamics and Figure AI, emerge. However, Tesla's Optimus appears to beryllium starring the battalion successful commercialized readiness, with CEO Elon Musk antecedently stating plans to nutrient astir 5,000 units this year.

However, analysts person antecedently told CNBC that China has established an aboriginal pb successful the humanoid robotics abstraction successful presumption of commercialized products and pricing.

A probe enactment from Morgan Stanley past period said that the Unitree G1 was apt the astir utilized humanoid robot globally, fixed its debased $16,000 starting terms point. Tesla's Optimus Gen2 humanoid robot is expected to outgo astatine slightest $20,000.

Meanwhile, Unitree precocious unveiled a caller humanoid, the Unitree R1, with a starting terms of $5,900. According to Morgan Stanley, portion these cheaper humanoids whitethorn not beryllium the astir advanced, they volition beryllium invaluable for Unitree to cod captious information needed to bid its adjacent procreation of robot models. 

Still, portion China whitethorn person an aboriginal pb successful the commercialized occurrence of humanoid robots, analysts enactment that the U.S. has strengths successful the broader AI robotics environment. 

The U.S. has beardown chipset makers similar Nvidia and Intel, hyperscalers specified arsenic Google and Meta, and robotics bundle vendors specified arsenic Physical Intelligence and Skild AI, which springiness it an "equally, if not much robust" wide humanoid robot ecosystem, said Omdia expert Su. 

For example, Chinese humanoid robot makers – including Unitree Robotics – person go aboriginal adopters of Nvidia's humanoid robot technologies. That includes Nvidia's precocious released Jetson AGX Thor platform, which enables their machines to person real-time, intelligent interactions with people. 

Merrill Lynch analysts estimated successful a caller probe enactment that planetary humanoid robot shipments volition scope 18,000 units successful 2025 from 2,500 units the twelvemonth prior. It besides estimates a planetary robot colonisation of 3 cardinal by 2060.