Unitree Robotics will launch its Shanghai IPO next week, selling 40.45 million shares. The Hangzhou-based firm's debut follows CXMT's record-breaking listing on the Star Market.
Key facts
- Unitree sells 40.45M shares, 10% of enlarged capital
- Wang Xingxing holds 31.29% ownership, 65.31% voting rights
- IPO launches next week on Shanghai Star Market
- Book-building starts August 5, offer price set August 6
- CXMT's market cap briefly exceeded ¥4 trillion ($592B)
Unitree Robotics will launch its initial public offering (IPO) in Shanghai next week, the firm announced late on Thursday, as China’s robotics start-ups race to go public amid an intense rivalry with their counterparts in the United States According to SCMP.
The Hangzhou-based company plans to sell 40.45 million shares, or 10 per cent of its enlarged share capital. After the listing, founder Wang Xingxing and related parties will hold 31.29 per cent of the company’s shares and 65.31 per cent of its voting rights. Unitree will begin book-building on August 5 and set an offer price the following day, with final results published on August 14.
Key Takeaways
- Unitree launches Shanghai IPO next week, selling 10% of shares.
- Founder retains 65.31% voting control amid US-China robotics rivalry.
A crowded pipeline
Unitree’s debut is another closely watched listing on Shanghai’s Star Market, following ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT), whose market capitalisation briefly exceeded 4 trillion yuan (US$592 billion) on Friday — the most valuable company on a mainland Chinese exchange. The timing is no accident: a string of Chinese robotics start-ups are pursuing public listings as US-China competition in humanoid robotics intensifies. Unitree’s move comes just days after Google DeepMind unveiled Gemini Robotics 2, a vision-language-action model built to control humanoids and tabletop arms The Decoder reports.
The listing gives Unitree fresh capital to scale production of its humanoid robots, which compete directly with Tesla’s Optimus and Figure’s offerings. The company did not disclose the offer price or target valuation in its announcement.
What the voting structure signals
Wang Xingxing’s 65.31% voting control after selling only 10% of the company signals that Unitree intends to keep strategic decisions tightly held — a common pattern among Chinese tech founders who want to fend off activist investors while accessing public markets. That structure also aligns with Beijing’s push to keep critical robotics IP domestic as export controls tighten.
Unitree’s IPO is a bellwether for the broader Chinese robotics sector, which has seen a wave of funding and product launches in 2026. The company’s ability to command a premium valuation will test investor appetite for humanoid robotics beyond the hype cycle.
What to watch
Watch the offer price set on August 6 and the final results on August 14. A valuation above 20 billion yuan would signal strong demand for Chinese humanoid robotics, while a discount to CXMT's multiple could indicate cooling investor sentiment.
Source: scmp.com
