The humanoid robot from Unitree Tech captivated audiences during the 2026 Spring Festival Gala by executing a highly complex backflip. As the silver-gray mechanical body traced a sharp arc through the air and landed steadily, then engaged in a robust "human-machine battle" with performers from Henan Tagou Martial Arts School, viewers collectively held their breath. The moment was electrifying.
This marked the second consecutive year humanoid robots took center stage on the Chinese New Year's Eve broadcast, following the breakout performance of "YangBOT" in 2025. However, the 2026 show featured not just Unitree Tech, but also Songyan Power, Magic Atom, and Galaxy General—four robotics companies sharing the platform, a record for the gala. Behind the festive and loud "martial stage," undercurrents of competition were evident. From dancing to martial arts, the movements of humanoid robots are becoming increasingly impressive. The emergence of companies like Ubtech, Unitree Tech, and newcomer Galaxy General signals rapid technological advancement and a thriving industry.
Yet, no matter how spectacular the backflip, the crucial hurdle remains mass production and delivery. Commercial viability is the most pressing issue.
**Hot Stage, Cool Reception for Deliveries** Watching the gala alone might suggest humanoid robots possess special forces-level capabilities. In the "WuBOT" segment, Unitree's robot demonstrated 360-degree spinning flips and formation changes while running at high speed. Galaxy General's robot, though not on the main stage, showcased precise operations like reciting tongue twisters, folding clothes, and skewering sausages backstage. Songyan Power's "bionic robot" performed a skit with veteran artist Cai Ming, appearing almost lifelike. Magic Atom's humanoid robot danced seamlessly with celebrities in the "Intelligent Future" segment.
The impact was immediate. Within two hours of the gala's start, searches for robots on JD.com surged over 300% compared to the previous period, with customer inquiries and orders increasing by 460% and 150% respectively. "Gala同款" (Same-as-Gala) robots from Unitree Tech, Magic Atom, and Songyan Power sold out within minutes, including two GALBOT G1 universal robots priced at nearly 630,000 yuan each.
The sales boom is real. But can these seemingly omnipotent stage performers function effectively in factories or homes? The reality is somewhat colder. The humanoid robot industry currently exists in a state of tension between "laboratory confidence" and "commercial anxiety." Backflips, kicking watermelons, dancing, and boxing have become standard demonstrations for new product launches. However, behind these technical feats lie weaknesses in practical application scenarios.
Dubbed the "first year of humanoid robot mass production" by the industry, 2025 did see leading companies report impressive figures. According to institutional data, Zhiyuan Robot shipped 5,168 units for the year, a significant jump from 600 units in 2024, capturing 39% of the global market share. Unitree Tech and Ubtech followed with shipments of 4,200 and 1,000 units, claiming 32% and 7% market share respectively. Unitree Tech, however, denied these figures, providing an official version stating their annual humanoid robot shipments exceeded 5,500 units.
Orders are also plentiful. Ubtech disclosed that its humanoid robot orders for 2025 totaled nearly 1.4 billion yuan, leading globally. But behind these glossy numbers lies a different story. IDC data indicates that the 2025 demand for humanoid robots was primarily driven by entertainment/commercial performances, education/research, and data collection scenarios. Combined, entertainment/commercial performances and education/research accounted for 61.4% of the market share. Simply put, these robots are not yet "moving bricks" in factories but are heading to labs and exhibition platforms.
Ubtech's Walker S series robots have indeed entered factories of companies like BYD, Foxconn, and Zeekr, but they primarily handle less critical tasks such as moving material boxes, applying car badges, and inspecting seat belts. The "factory training" mentioned by companies like Galaxy General often remains in a "probationary period"—able to work, but not yet reliable enough to replace shifts.
Efficiency presents a greater challenge. A Ubtech executive revealed that the Walker S2 humanoid robot's production efficiency in specific tasks like stacking boxes and quality inspection is only about 30%-50% that of a human worker. Reports suggest this robot's price starts around 200,000 yuan. In other words, for certain jobs, an expensive robot working for hours might produce less than a skilled worker achieves in one hour. The same executive expressed hope to increase production efficiency to 80% of human levels by 2027—a goal that, if achieved, would be promising, especially considering robots can operate 24/7.
**The 100 Million Yuan "Funding Roadshow"** If the technology isn't fully mature and factory doors aren't truly open, why do robotics firms invest heavily to appear on the gala? The answer is simple: it's a highly cost-effective "funding roadshow." Reports suggest the partnership fee for robot appearances at the 2026 gala ranged from 60 million to 100 million yuan. While expensive, the gala represents a top-tier global audience—a scarce opportunity for any brand, especially startups seeking visibility with investors.
The data proves the point. By 24:00 on February 16, the 2026 CCTV Spring Festival Gala reached 677 million users across all media platforms, with 13.5 billion views and streams on new media platforms. Live video plays on CCTV's own apps累计 reached 578 million, an increase of 53.39 million viewers compared to the previous year.
Unitree Tech emerged as the gala's biggest winner. From the debut of its robot bull "Ben Ben" in 2021, to the phenomenon of "YangBOT" in 2025, and the explosive impact of "WuBOT" in 2026, each appearance has boosted the company's valuation. By the end of 2025, the company completed its IPO辅导 (pre-listing tutoring), positioning itself as a potential frontrunner for an "A-share humanoid robot IPO," with a valuation reaching 12.5 billion yuan.
Ubtech, as the "old guard" already listed in Hong Kong, was the earliest humanoid robot company on the gala stage—appearing in 2016, 2018, 2019, and 2021. Tianyancha data shows that following its 2016 and 2018 gala appearances, Ubtech secured massive funding rounds of $1 billion and $820 million respectively. With this precedent and the ongoing heat in the humanoid robot sector, the gala remains the premier stage for attracting capital. A successful performance, even if perceived as superficial skill, allows companies to pitch a compelling story to investors: showcasing advanced technology and justifying higher valuations.
However, the hype hasn't shielded the industry from pricing pressures. In the latter half of 2025, the most noticeable change in China's humanoid robot sector wasn't rapid technological advancement, but an intensifying price war. To capture market share in entertainment and education/research, manufacturers began aggressive price cutting. In July 2025, Unitree Tech launched its new R1 humanoid robot starting at just 39,900 yuan, a fraction of the price of mainstream models. In October, Songyan Power dropped a "depth charge" by introducing "Xiao Bumi" priced at 9,998 yuan—cheaper than a high-end smartphone at the time.
This "price butcher" strategy first destabilized the downstream leasing market. On the second-hand platform Xianyu, the daily rental price for a dance-capable Unitree G1 robot, which could command over 10,000 yuan and was in high demand early in 2025, plummeted to 4,000 yuan or even lower by the second half of the year. The reason was simple: supply increased, but demand for events like weddings and mall promotions remained limited, causing a rapid supply-demand reversal.
The price war also exposed the industry's homogeneity crisis. Industry voices suggest that if humanoid robot functionality remains limited to dancing and guiding, without widespread factory application, the market will remain niche. Widespread adoption in industrial settings is seen as key to achieving a breakthrough.
Authorities have taken note of this potential bubble. In late 2025, officials unusually singled out the robot industry, urging a balance between "speed" and "bubble," and highlighting risks like the crowding of highly similar products and compressed R&D space. However, setting aside homogeneity concerns, the price reductions by Unitree Tech and Songyan Power could be beneficial for consumer adoption. Lowering costs makes high-tech products more accessible, potentially integrating robots into everyday life and advancing the vision of "a robot in every home."
**Hurdles Remain for Practical Application** So, how far are humanoid robots from becoming true "tools"? An economic calculation provides insight: a humanoid robot capable of simple factory tasks currently costs hundreds of thousands, or even millions, of yuan. For a business owner, hiring a worker for a few thousand yuan per month is far more economical than purchasing a robot prone to malfunctions.
The technological account is even more sobering. The biggest current bottleneck for humanoid robots is the "brain" (AI and control systems). A breakthrough here is necessary to trigger its "iPhone moment." Statistics indicate global humanoid robot shipments exceeded 10,000 units in 2025. Experts predict this could reach 150,000 units by 2030 and surpass 1 million by 2035, indicating the industry is still in its early stages.
Crucially, most humanoid robot companies remain in the proof-of-concept or demonstration phase. None have fully graduated beyond this stage. Industrial clients need to observe real-world performance post-deployment, including efficiency gains, economic viability, and whether customers repurchase after 3-6 month trial periods. This highlights concerns regarding cost-benefit imbalance and a potential technology capability gap.
Furthermore, application scenarios beyond fixed industrial tasks like welding and搬运 (handling/moving) remain unclear. The value of humanoid robots in consumer and commercial sectors is yet to be proven. For example, while Galaxy General's team has deployed robot staff in over 100 "Galaxy Capsule" convenience stores across 20+ cities, using robots costing hundreds of thousands of yuan for tasks like skewering sausages or retrieving packages—easily handled by humans—seems like overkill.
However, GGII data projects the global embodied intelligent humanoid robot market will reach 6.339 billion yuan in 2025, potentially exceeding 100 billion yuan around 2030. Application scenarios for embodied intelligence are expected to evolve from simple commercial uses to structured, complex industrial fields, eventually expanding into unstructured scenarios like homes and elderly care. This steep growth curve underpins the industry's confidence to continue investing.
But the prerequisite is that someone must first overcome the challenges of industrial applications and establish a viable commercial loop to truly activate the potential chain reaction in this multi-billion-yuan market. Currently, humanoid robots are still far from achieving a genuine commercial闭环 (closed loop).
When the stage lights dim and the curtain falls, these robotics companies face a daunting commercialization exam. The company that first sheds the "superficial skills" label and becomes a genuine contributor to factory production lines will be the one to survive this marathon. The ultimate survivor might not be the one with the most spectacular flip, but the one that best understands the needs of the factory floor manager. After all, capital markets are not swayed by backflips, but by the hard numbers on financial statements.
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