China’s robot marker Unitree sees shares surge 600% on stock market debut

Shares in Chinese robot company Unitree surged by over 600% during its trading debut in Shanghai on Wednesday, underscoring a massive onshore investor frenzy for AI  and robotics hardware.

The Hangzhou-based company, officially known as Yushu Technology Co, saw its stock climb as high as 1,100 yuan ($125) before easing back to close roughly 460% higher at 845 yuan.

The initial public offering was priced at 150.80 yuan ($22.36) per share, raising over $900 million and valuing the business at approximately $9 billion prior to its market entry. By the end of its first trading session, Unitree’s market capitalization surged to roughly $50.7 billion.

Analyst demand for the offering was unprecedented. The tranche of shares reserved for retail investors was oversubscribed thousands of times over, reflecting immense enthusiasm, driven in part by Unitree’s high domestic brand recognition.

The firm’s robots have achieved widespread fame across China through televised appearances at events including the Lunar New Year galas, where they have performed martial arts, backflips, and dancing displays. Last year, Unitree shipped more than 5,500 humanoid robots.

As the first major robotics company to list on mainland China’s stock market, Unitree provides a crucial valuation anchor for the sector. Market experts note that investor interest is increasingly pivoting from abstract software infrastructure toward physical artificial intelligence applications. Analysts project that global sales for human-like robots could expand significantly over the next decade.

The blockbuster IPO coincided with the opening of the World Robot Conference in Beijing. However, the milestone comes amid escalating international trade frictions. Last month, the US Federal Communications Commission enacted a ban on imports of foreign-made humanoid and quadruped robots, citing national security risks, a move expected to challenge Unitree’s overseas expansion.

Despite international headwinds, Unitree intends to channel the majority of its IPO proceeds into expanding manufacturing capacity, advancing embodied AI models and deepening technological research.