Recent funding rounds have placed valuations above $2.9 billion on two Chinese robotics startups, signaling ongoing investor confidence and advancing China's goal to outperform American companies such as Tesla Inc. and Figure AI Inc.
AI² Robotics and X Square Robot now both carry a 20 billion yuan valuation. X Square Robot, backed by Alibaba, ByteDance, and Meituan, announced in a statement that its latest funding round involved IDG along with prior supporters HSG (previously Sequoia China) and Xiaomi Corp., without disclosing how much it secured. Both startups are developing humanoid robots.
Over 140 Chinese companies are now involved in the field, building technology meant for large-scale deployment in factories and other work settings to substitute for human labor. A wide range of investors - from venture capital firms to automakers and government-backed funds - are channeling money into artificial intelligence for humanoid robots. China aims to become the global leader in funding, industrial application, and eventual supremacy in what Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang described as "physical AI."
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This surge of capital is fueled by a national strategy to leapfrog Western rivals in a market that many analysts believe could be worth trillions of dollars. The two startups' valuations, each above 20 billion yuan, underscore how quickly investor appetite has grown for companies that combine advanced robotics with AI. Both startups are competing to deploy humanoid robots in actual manufacturing environments, where they could eventually replace human workers on assembly lines and in logistics centers.
China's push is already generating IPO candidates. Unitree Robotics, headquartered in Hangzhou, gained regulatory approval from Beijing in early June to launch a 4.2 billion yuan initial public offering in Shanghai, spearheading a series of upcoming robotics listings on mainland exchanges and in Hong Kong. AI² Robotics plans to begin construction shortly on a manufacturing facility capable of churning out tens of thousands of humanoid robots annually.
The recent surge in funding reflects a broader acceleration across the sector. Beyond the two new unicorns, dozens of other startups are scaling up production and seeking public listings, driven by government incentives and corporate partnerships. According to ITjuzi, total investment this year has already eclipsed the full-year figure for 2025, underscoring the deepening commitment to what policymakers view as a strategic industry.
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