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Humanoid Robots: Chinese OEMs Race for Next‑Generation Profit Growth - RobotHOT

Humanoid Robots: Chinese OEMs Race for Next‑Generation Profit Growth

The hype surrounding humanoid robots is hardly new, fueled largely by Tesla’s Optimus and viral demo clips from Boston Dynamics’ Atlas. Beneath the buzz lies tangible technical progress: robot physical performance keeps improving, and LLM‑derived AI enables complex robots to learn diverse real‑world tasks. Driven by these advances, a wave of new entrants — notably Chinese automakers — are betting big on commercial profits from humanoid robots. Xpeng’s robotics division secured over $900 million in fresh funding, hitting a $6.3‑billion post‑money valuation. Backed by IDG Capital, Gaorong Ventures, Tencent and Alibaba, it marks China’s largest‑ever single financing round for embodied AI. Xpeng’s founders He Xiaopeng and Brian Gu also personally invested roughly $100 million in this round to back Iron,...

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  • China embodied AI funding jumps fivefold to 93.5 bln yuan in H1 2026

    Investment in China's embodied-artificial-intelligence sector reached 93.5 billion yuan in the first half of 2026, up five times year-on-year, while deal count soared 137% to 322 transactions, signaling sustained investor appetite. Monthly funding activity remained fairly steady, with March and June each recording over 60 deals. Three hubs – Beijing, Guangdong and Shanghai – captured 71% of all transactions and 79% of total value. Beijing topped the list with 100 deals worth 35.5 billion yuan, followed by Shenzhen (61 deals, 23.8 billion) and Hangzhou (34 deals, 9.2 billion). Suzhou and Wuxi also drew significant hardware-production projects, reinforcing the strong cluster effect in the Yangtze River Delta.

  • Vučić Attends! Serbia‑China Humanoid Robot Plant Begins Mass Production in Šabac

    A humanoid robot manufacturing facility built through cooperation between Serbia, AgiBot Innovation (Shanghai) Technology Co., Ltd. (AgiBot), and Minth Group has officially commenced mass production in Šabac, with Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić attending the launch ceremony. Vučić toured production workshops and product exhibition halls, and interacted on‑site with humanoid robot units.

  • Zhongjian Technology to Invest RMB1.2bn in Intelligent Robot Project in Yongkang

    Zhongjian Technology announced it and its holding subsidiary Shanghai Huazhijian have inked an investment agreement for an intelligent robot industrialization project with Yongkang Municipal People’s Government. A dedicated project entity will be established locally to roll out the project with an estimated total investment of RMB1.2 billion. It is designed to connect upstream‑downstream intelligent robot supply chains and boost industrial growth, aligning with the firm’s strategic goals.

  • a16z Bets Big on Hardware, Raises $1.1B for Debut Infrastructure Fund

    Prestigious venture capital firm a16z is ramping up its bets on the hardware sector, having secured $1.1 billion for its first fund exclusively focused on hardware infrastructure. Dubbed “Machine Age”, the newly launched fund targets investments across core tech hardware tracks, including AI processors, storage chips, networking equipment, data infrastructure and robotics. The fund marks a major strategic shift for a16z, expanding its layout from software and AI models to underlying physical hardware that powers global tech and intelligent industries.

  • Serbia's First Robot Factory Opens in Šabac, Europe's First Mass‑Production Base for Humanoid Robots

    Local time August 29, Serbia's first robot factory officially went into operation in Šabac, a city in western Serbia. Jointly built by China and Serbia, it is also Europe's first mass‑production base for humanoid robots. The first‑phase investment of the facility stands at 20 million euros, covering an area of around 3,000 square meters. Its core operations include the assembly of humanoid robots and quadruped robot dogs, calibration of motion and vision systems, as well as performance testing. Multiple models of humanoid robots are now available from the plant. The robots will be initially deployed in industrial scenarios, with gradual expansion into education, public services and other sectors. Under future plans, a robotics industrial park will be constructed in Serbia with a total planned investment of approximately 200 million euros. Upon full completion, the project is expected to reach a maximum annual output of 20,000 units of humanoid robots and robot dogs, supplying products for European and global markets.

  • Unitree Robotics surges 629% on STAR Market debut, valued at CNY444.91 bln

    Unitree Robotics made its trading debut on Shanghai Stock Exchange's STAR Market on Wednesday, opening at 1,100 yuan per share, a 629.44% jump from its IPO price, giving the firm a market capitalization of 444.91 billion yuan. Retail investors holding one standard 500‑share IPO allotment stood to book around 474,600 yuan in paper profit if selling at the opening price. Founded in 2016 by Wang Xingxing and headquartered in Hangzhou, Unitree is among China’s rare general‑purpose robotics firms generating substantial revenue and consistent profits. For the January‑June period of 2026, the company posted operating revenue of 1.152 billion yuan, rising 48.54% year‑on‑year.

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