A leading provider in a niche segment of the humanoid robotics supply chain, Harmonic has seen its revenue compound at 66% over the past three years, yet it is heading for a Hong Kong listing amidst consecutive annual losses. The Chinese robotic harmonic reducer manufacturer recently submitted its listing application to the main board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, with CMB International as its sole sponsor.
The company is a core supplier of precision transmission components for Chinese robotics. According to a Frost & Sullivan report, based on projected 2025 shipment volume, the company ranks second among Chinese harmonic reducer providers with a 21.4% market share, and also second by revenue with a 12.9% share. Furthermore, per the same source, by 2025, Harmonic was identified as one of only two domestic manufacturers in China that had achieved delivery and entered mass production for harmonic reducers used in humanoid robots.
The company offers a product portfolio covering harmonic reducers, joint modules, robotic arms, and automated workstations. Its financial performance shows strong growth but inconsistent profitability. From 2023 to 2025, revenue grew from RMB 95 million to RMB 108 million and then to RMB 261 million, representing a compound annual growth rate of 65.75%. However, the company remains loss-making, with net losses of RMB 169 million, RMB 169 million, and RMB 171 million respectively over those three years, accumulating a total loss of RMB 509 million.
Harmonic raised approximately RMB 484 million from multiple institutional investors across Series A to F rounds between 2017 and 2023, all of which had been utilized as of the latest practicable date. As of April 2026, the company's cash and cash equivalents stood at a modest RMB 22 million.
Rapid Revenue Growth Amidst Cash Flow Strain
Founded in 2013, Harmonic was among China's first developers of harmonic reducers. Through early entry and sustained focus, it has become a core supplier in China's robotic harmonic reducer industry and one of the few domestic companies capable of competing with international leaders.
The company operates three main business lines: harmonic reducers, joint modules & robotic arms, and automated workstations. Harmonic reducers form the core business, with revenue CAGR of 34.73% from 2023-2025, accounting for 96.7%, 95.7%, and 63.9% of total revenue respectively. Joint modules & robotic arms are the second-largest segment, with a staggering 772% revenue CAGR over the period, its share rising from 1% to 26.2%, primarily driven by performance in 2025. Automated workstations only began generating revenue in 2025, contributing a 9.4% share.
Harmonic reducers, the company's original business launched in 2015, are widely used in multi-jointed humanoid and industrial robots. The product comes in three types: cup, hat, and dual-rigid-wheel structures. Sales are primarily domestic, with a small portion exported to markets including Europe, the US, Japan, and South Korea. In 2025, the product achieved positioning accuracy of ±15 arcseconds and a service life exceeding 10,000 hours, placing it in the top tier both in China and globally.
Shipments of harmonic reducers maintained high growth, increasing from 115,300 units in 2023 to 142,800 and then 291,500 units in 2025, a CAGR of 59%. However, the average selling price per unit declined from RMB 802 to RMB 573, a drop of 28.6%. This dynamic of volume increase and price decrease resulted in revenue growth lagging behind shipment growth. Nevertheless, harmonic reducers represent a critical gateway into the humanoid robotics value chain and are poised to benefit from the explosive growth of that industry.
Leveraging years of experience in R&D and production of harmonic reducers, the company expanded its R&D focus to joint modules, robotic arms, and automated workstations in 2022, gradually implementing a revenue diversification strategy. Joint modules and arms are used for multi-axis motion and end-effector operations in various robotic environments, while automated workstations are employed for flexible manufacturing and smart upgrades of production lines.
From 2023 to 2025, Harmonic's joint module business achieved growth in both volume and price. Shipments surged 12.8 times from 451 to 6,246 units, while the average unit price rose 2.52 times from RMB 2,010 to RMB 7,074, driving sustained high revenue growth for this segment. Automated workstations generated revenue in 2025 with sales of 56 units at a high average unit price of RMB 436,900. With production ramping up in 2026, revenue contribution from this segment is expected to increase further.
It is noteworthy that while Harmonic remains loss-making, its profitability shows a clear improving trend. Gross margin fluctuated between 29.5%, 24.1%, and 25.6% from 2023 to 2025. However, expense ratios declined consistently: the sales expense ratio fell by 3.1 percentage points to 3.5%, the administrative expense ratio dropped 7.8 percentage points to 11.5%, and the R&D expense ratio decreased 14.6 percentage points to 18.9%.
The company's operating loss improved significantly, with a loss margin of 9% in 2025, narrowing by 15.2 percentage points compared to 2023. Additionally, changes in the carrying value of redeemable liabilities significantly impacted net profit, but as a non-recurring item, the adjusted net loss margin after exclusion narrowed by 21.71 percentage points to 3.41%.
However, the company's cash flow situation is less optimistic. Operating cash flow remained negative, with a net outflow of RMB 63 million in 2025, an 87% year-on-year increase. Current assets are largely comprised of inventory and receivables, with minimal cash on hand. As of April 2026, cash equivalents were only RMB 22 million, while current interest-bearing borrowings stood at RMB 159 million, indicating some short-term debt repayment pressure.
Favorable Industry Outlook in a High-Interest Sector
From an industry perspective, all three of Harmonic's product lines supply the robotics industry, which has a highly favorable outlook. According to Frost & Sullivan, China has become the world's largest robotics market and maintains double-digit CAGR. Shipments reached 800,000 units in 2025 and are projected to reach 4.7 million by 2030, a CAGR of 42.5%. By revenue, the market size is expected to reach RMB 491.4 billion by 2030.
Humanoid robots represent the most promising segment and the largest growth variable within robotics, currently in its infancy but poised for exponential growth upon commercial scaling. Benefiting from the robotics industry's growth红利, the harmonic reducer sector is also expected to maintain high growth, with the market size projected to expand from RMB 1.3 billion in 2025 to RMB 13.4 billion by 2030, a CAGR of 60.2%.
China's harmonic reducer market for robotics is relatively concentrated, with the top five providers accounting for 75.8% of total shipments in 2025. Based on both 2025 harmonic reducer shipments and revenue, Harmonic ranks second in the market with shares of 21.4% and 12.9% respectively, giving it a certain scale advantage. Moreover, within the domestic supply chain, only a few companies can stably meet the aforementioned performance requirements and achieve batch delivery, and this company is one of them.
Beyond scale, in terms of product competitiveness, the company possesses full-chain in-house R&D capabilities. It has established two R&D centers and one joint research institute, including one in Shaoxing, Zhejiang, focused on processing technology and materials, and another in Nanjing, Jiangsu, focused on electronic control systems. R&D expense ratios were 33.5%, 30.9%, and 18.9% from 2023 to 2025. As of the latest practicable date, the company holds 81 granted patents in China, including 52 invention patents, 26 utility model patents, and three design patents, and has submitted 33 patent applications pending approval, along with 26 registered trademarks.
Harmonic has two production bases, both located in Shaoxing. One is a leased facility that commenced operations in 2013, and the other is a self-built facility that began production in August 2025. In 2025, the designed capacities of these two bases were 152,300 units and 192,500 units respectively. Capacity utilization rates for harmonic reducers were 93% and 97.1%, nearing their upper limits, indicating that the existing bases will be insufficient to meet market demand.
It is worth noting that all three of Harmonic's product series fall within the acceptable sectors for Professional Technology companies as defined under Chapter 18C of the Listing Rules (specifically, robot technology under Advanced Hardware & Software). For the currently sought-after new listings in Hong Kong, this undoubtedly enhances its investment appeal. Within the humanoid robotics supply chain sector in Hong Kong, many stocks command attractive valuation levels, with some trading at price-to-sales multiples exceeding 10x.
In summary, Harmonic's fundamentals are reasonable, with revenue maintaining high growth. Although it continues to report losses, there are clear signs of improvement, with expense ratios declining significantly and the adjusted net loss margin narrowing substantially. The industry outlook is favorable, and the company possesses first-mover, scale, and R&D technology advantages. However, risks remain, such as tight cash flow and significant short-term debt pressure. The proposed listing proceeds would help alleviate this debt pressure. The humanoid robotics field is a currently hot sector in Hong Kong, and the company's IPO is likely to attract investor interest.
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