The "first humanoid robot stock on the A-share market" is approaching its debut.
"Thank you for giving us the opportunity to invest in Unitree five years ago," Lei Jun, founder of Xiaomi, expressed to Wang Xingxing during a product launch event on March 19. The following day, March 20, the Shanghai Stock Exchange officially accepted Unitree Technology's application for an IPO on the STAR Market.
The precise timing underscores Lei Jun's foresight. An investment made five years ago is now poised to transform into a highly sought-after public stock. According to IT桔子 data, as of March 20, 2026, there have been 207 financing rounds in China's robotics sector this year, with 133 involving humanoid robots, benefiting 115 companies. Among all private robotics companies, Unitree stands alone as the only profitable firm, boasting a gross margin nearing 60%, leading global shipments of humanoid robots, and now gaining entry to the A-share market.
The prospectus reveals significant figures: 2025 revenue reached approximately 1.708 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 335%; non-GAAP net profit exceeded 600 million yuan. The company aims to raise 4.202 billion yuan. Notably, Unitree achieved profitability in 2024, and its gross margin climbed to 60.27% in 2025, with both humanoid and quadruped robots exceeding 60% margins, while many competitors remain unprofitable or report margins below 30%. Over 2 billion yuan of the fundraising will be directed towards core technologies like embodied AI models, alongside plans to expand production capacity to 75,000 humanoid robots and 115,000 quadruped robots annually.
While competitors often burn through investor funds on prototypes, Unitree has successfully sold 5,500 humanoid robots, maintaining an average selling price of 167,600 yuan and a gross margin of 62.9%. This demonstrates a fundamental rule of hard technology: the first to commercialize lab technology into viable products gains superior pricing power in the capital markets.
**Product Evolution: From Quadrupeds to Humanoids** Unitree's revenue structure reveals a clear strategic shift. In 2022, the company's main revenue was 121 million yuan, with quadruped robots constituting 76.57%, firmly establishing its identity as a "robot dog maker." To date, Unitree has sold over 30,000 quadruped robots, leading global market share and generating stable cash flow through scaled production.
In August 2023, Unitree launched its first full-size humanoid robot, the H1, selling only 5 units that year for 2.9671 million yuan in revenue, a negligible amount. The turning point came in 2024 with the mass production of the mid-size G1 humanoid robot, starting at 99,000 yuan, marking a crucial step towards commercialization. This was also the year Unitree became profitable.
2025 proved pivotal. At the beginning of the year, 16 Unitree H1 robots performed an AI-driven group dance on the CCTV Spring Festival Gala, instantly making "humanoid robots" a mainstream tech topic. By the first three quarters of 2025, revenue from humanoid robots reached 595 million yuan, accounting for 51.53% of total revenue and surpassing quadruped robots (488 million yuan, 42.25%) for the first time. Sales volume for humanoid robots hit 3,551 units, 8.6 times the total for 2024. The transition from 5 to 3,500 units took merely two years.
The price trajectory is equally significant. The average selling price for humanoid robots dropped from 593,400 yuan in 2023 to 260,700 yuan in 2024, and further to 167,600 yuan in the first three quarters of 2025. Unitree attributes this to product mix changes and strategic pricing aimed at building long-term competitive advantage. The strategy is clear: trade price for scale, scale for data, and data for accelerated technological iteration—a model already proven successful in the quadruped robot market.
Wang Xingxing's ambitions extend further. He recently stated that humanoid robots will "outrun Usain Bolt by mid-2026." While Bolt's 100-meter world record is 9.58 seconds (approximately 10.4 m/s), the Unitree H1 has already achieved speeds over 5 m/s in testing. Whether this goal is fully realized, Unitree has convinced the market of its potential.
**A Stellar List of Shareholders** The industry-wide attention surrounding Unitree's IPO stems not only from its performance but also from its star-studded investor roster. Founder Wang Xingxing directly holds 23.82% and indirectly controls 10.94%, wielding 68.78% of voting rights through a special arrangement.
Among institutional investors, the Meituan-affiliated entities collectively hold approximately 9.6488%, making them the largest shareholders after Wang and the employee incentive platform. Sequoia China holds about 7.1149%, while Matrix Partners holds roughly 5.4528%. The participation of internet giants is particularly notable; Tencent holds a direct stake of 0.5986%, while Alibaba and Ant Group-affiliated funds are also present—a rare occurrence of rival tech giants investing in the same robotics company.
Industrial capital is well-represented, including funds linked to Byd Company Limited, Geely, China Mobile, the Beijing Robotics Industry Development Fund, Shenzhen Capital Group, and Jinshi Investment. State-backed, industrial, and financial investors are all on board.
This lineup sends two key signals. First, a consensus on the sector's potential has formed, evolving from pure financial investment to include strategic industrial and state-level backing, recognizing robotics as a strategic national industry. Second, it demonstrates Unitree's strong valuation premium. Despite a tightening private market, Unitree attracted dense capital inflow, affirming its scarcity value as an industry leader. Its post-money valuation exceeded 10 billion yuan after its 2025 Series C round, with expectations for a higher market cap upon IPO.
**The Significance of Being First** Unitree is the first humanoid robotics company to formally apply for a STAR Market listing. Over 20 other robotics firms have announced IPO plans. Unitree's "first mover" status, coinciding with its tenth anniversary, carries major implications.
Firstly, it commands a "first humanoid robot stock" scarcity premium on the A-share market. While robot companies like UBTECH ROBOTICS are listed in Hong Kong, A-shares, particularly on the STAR Market, offer different valuation logic, enhanced liquidity, institutional demand, and a "domestic substitution" narrative.
Secondly, Unitree will set the industry's valuation benchmark. Its IPO pricing, P/E ratio, and market performance will directly influence the valuation expectations of companies waiting in line.
Thirdly, it opens a viable exit channel for capital. A successful Unitree IPO provides a template for early investors, potentially invigorating subsequent fundraising and M&A activity within the robotics sector.
Risks remain. Unitree acknowledges in its prospectus that embodied AI model technology is still in the R&D phase globally and has not yet been scaled in its products. However, the company has proactively open-sourced its WMA and VLA models to position itself for future technological shifts. The industry faces a common bottleneck: while Unitree excels in the "small brain" (motor control like running and jumping), the "big brain" (comprehension, interaction, autonomous decision-making) is not yet mature. Breaking this technological barrier is crucial for moving robots from labs to factories and homes, and will ultimately define Unitree's post-IPO valuation ceiling.
**2026: A Frenzy of Fundraising** Viewed broadly, the robotics sector experienced frenzied fundraising activity in 2026. According to IT桔子, by March 20, 2026, there were 207 financing rounds in robotics, with 133 involving 115 humanoid robot companies.
A clear trend emerged: star companies raised funds more frequently and in larger amounts. For instance, Zhiyuan Robot completed multiple rounds in 2026, with a latest valuation exceeding 7 billion yuan. Yinhe General Robot secured a 2.5 billion yuan B+ round at a 22.5 billion yuan valuation, backed by a "national team" of investors. Other significant raises included Lingchu Intelligent (2 billion yuan Pre-A, 8 billion yuan valuation), Paxini (1 billion yuan B, 10 billion yuan valuation), and Xingdong Jiyuan (1 billion yuan strategic, 10 billion yuan valuation).
Another notable development was the entry of entertainment capital. On March 18, robot rental platform "Qingtian Zu" raised hundreds of millions in an angel round from investors including Yuehua Entertainment and Mingjia Capital. Following the Spring Festival Gala performance, robots gained entertainment and traffic value, attracting capital from new sectors.
Financing rounds are also occurring earlier. Many companies secured multiple rounds within a year of founding, with angel, Pre-A, and A+ rounds announced frequently in March. The underlying logic is clear: the sector is hot, capital is abundant, but high-quality projects are scarce, forcing investors to act quickly.
**Conclusion** Lei Jun's gratitude to Wang Xingxing表面上是感谢创始人给了投资机会, but on a deeper level, it acknowledges Unitree's role in validating the humanoid robotics sector and making investors' bets potentially profitable.
Unitree's IPO expands the imagination for hard tech companies on the A-share market and paves the way for over 20 peers awaiting listing. Challenges persist—immature "big brain" technology, complex international trade, and intensifying competition—all frankly disclosed in the prospectus. Yet, the market is willing to price in these risks, driven by a widespread belief that embodied intelligence represents the ultimate form of AI.
In a message to investors, Wang Xingxing wrote that the company's decade-long journey coincides with the dawn of a new era in AI and embodied intelligence. While the narrative is grand, it is backed by tangible results: 5,500 robots sold, 1.7 billion yuan in revenue, and a 60% gross margin in 2025. For Unitree's early investors, the path forward seems straightforward: express gratitude to Wang Xingxing and anticipate the financial returns.
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