China's securities regulator has approved Unitree Robotics' registration to list on Shanghai's STAR Market, clearing the final formal hurdle before the humanoid-and-quadruped robot maker can price its shares. Reuters put the deal size at roughly $619 million (about 4.2 billion yuan), in line with figures from Caixin Global and the South China Morning Post over the past month.
What has actually been approved
The sign-off from the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) approves Unitree's registration, not the completed listing itself. Unitree still has to set a final share price and issuance date — steps that typically follow registration approval by weeks rather than days. Shanghai's listing review committee cleared the application on June 1, 2026, and the CSRC registration approval landed on July 3. Unitree originally filed its prospectus in March seeking about $610 million; the current number reflects yuan-dollar drift more than scope change.
How Unitree got here
Founded in Hangzhou in 2016 by engineer Wang Xingxing, Unitree built its brand on quadruped robots before pivoting hard into humanoid platforms with the H1, G1 and R1. Caixin reported 2025 revenue of roughly 1.7 billion yuan; humanoid robots accounted for 51.5% of Unitree's revenue in the first nine months of the year, up from 27.6% in all of 2024, with the company shipping more than 5,500 humanoid units. The prospectus earmarks IPO proceeds for research on robot "brains" — software and control systems — plus new product lines and a smart manufacturing base.
The Chinese robotics IPO wave
Unitree is one of several Chinese robotics firms racing to public markets in 2026. AgiBot and EngineAI have both pursued Hong Kong listings, and smaller players including Dobot, Deep Robotics and Leju Robotics are reportedly weighing their own routes to capital. The $2.8 billion Kling AI round and State Grid's $1B robot order illustrate how quickly Chinese robotics capital and demand are stacking up around the same set of listings.
What comes next
Reports on Unitree's overall valuation range between roughly $5.9 billion and $7 billion depending on when and how they were calculated; a firm number will only emerge once Unitree and its underwriters set the offer price. The company has a Nvidia endorsement earlier this year and a spot on a Pentagon list of Chinese firms with alleged military ties (which Unitree disputes) — both facts likely to be scrutinized as the offering formally goes to market.
Reporting based on coverage from Reuters, The Next Web, Caixin Global and Bloomberg.