As China’s humanoid-robot hype cools, Unitree sees profit plunge

Earnings blow

Unitree Robotics (Unitree 机器人) reported a sharp drop in adjusted first-quarter profit just days before a crucial Star Market IPO hearing, underscoring how fast growth in China’s humanoid-robot sector is colliding with fierce price competition and rising costs. The company said first-quarter revenue rose about 68% year‑on‑year to ¥422.8 million, but adjusted net profit fell 52% to ¥40.3 million from ¥84.8 million a year earlier. Unitree attributed the squeeze to big jumps in R&D and sales expenses, a much higher revenue base after explosive 2025 growth, and what it called a cooling of the broader humanoid robotics hype.

IPO test and market reaction

Unitree is seeking to raise ¥4.2 billion (about US$619 million) to fund robot bodies, embodied-AI models and manufacturing capacity ahead of a June 1 hearing by the Shanghai Stock Exchange listing committee. It has been reported that the IPO milestone sparked a buying frenzy among mainland retail investors chasing companies with exposure to Unitree, including pre‑listing shareholders and upstream suppliers. The timing is awkward: higher top‑line growth, but shrinking margins, make valuation debates louder just before the listing review.

Bigger picture and outlook

For Western readers, the Unitree episode is a window into China’s wider robotics push — fast product cycles, aggressive pricing and heavy subsidy‑style investment. Reportedly, if commercial adoption of general‑purpose humanoid robots stalls or the short‑term leasing market cools, Unitree warned its growth and margins could be further pressured. Geopolitics matters too: global trade frictions and export controls on advanced chips and AI hardware raise costs and constrain suppliers, complicating capital‑intensive expansion strategies. Can Unitree scale profitably in a brutally competitive market? The IPO hearing will be an early answer — but the sector’s longer test is whether real commercial demand can keep pace with the hype.