Unitree Robotics' $9B IPO sets valuation benchmark for China's embodied AI

Unitree Robotics, the Hangzhou-based humanoid robot maker, has priced its initial public offering on Shanghai's Star Market at 150.8 yuan per share, valuing the company at 60.99 billion yuan (US$9 billion). The company will sell 40.45 million new shares to raise 6.1 billion yuan—exceeding its original 4.2 billion yuan target. Widely billed as mainland China's first humanoid stock, the IPO drew strategic investors including AI unicorn DeepSeek, tech giant Tencent, and state-backed entities like China National Petroleum Corp, China Southern Power Grid, and the National Council for Social Security Fund.

DeepSeek invested 141 million yuan into the IPO, subject to a three-year lock-up, and agreed to co-develop AI models and embodied-intelligence technology with Unitree. The two firms will grant each other priority access in robot procurement and AI model services. According to Zheng Hualiang, founder of Hangzhou-based Leap VC, Unitree's IPO will act as a valuation anchor—and effectively the ceiling—for the entire embodied-intelligence sector in China, where retail investor enthusiasm is running high amid the country's AI robotics boom.