Chinese robot maker Unitree Robotics has given it between one to three years until the humanoid market has its golden ‘ChatGPT’ moment.
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Breakthrough Coming
Speaking at the Hongquao International Economic Forum, Unitree founder and CEO Wang Xingxing, said the current development of embodied-intelligence models was moving “a bit slowly.” But he added that the “progress in full-body motor control via deep reinforcement learning is very obvious this year.”
He described the current stage of embodied robotics as “similar to the one to three years before the launch of ChatGPT” – when insiders had a clear direction but were still awaiting a breakthrough.
The forum was part of the China International Import Expo, where Unitree displayed new models, including the lightweight, consumer-facing R1, a taller and more facially human-like H2, and an upgraded industrial-grade legged robot, the A2.
According to the South China Morning Post, “crowds eagerly raised their phones to film robots boxing and dancing.”
The company also unveiled a remote-control platform on its WeChat video channel earlier this week, allowing people to control a robot’s actions through a wearable device, or enable a robot to learn from video content.
IPO Ahead
Unitree is reportedly eyeing up a likely $7 billion IPO in Shanghai. It is not yet clear how much Unitree Robotics will seek to raise in the IPO but in China a company with a valuation of around 50 billion yuan has to issue over 10% of its shares.
Unitree released a number of videos last year showing its robots walking, climbing and carrying loads. It also won multiple medals at the World Humanoid Robot Games this summer, including the 4X100 relay.
President Xi was likely cheering from his armchair as he provides more support to China’s tech firms in the area of robotics, semiconductors and AI, to compete with U.S. rivals such as Tesla’s (TSLA) Optimus. See below:
According to International Data Corporation, shipments of commercial humanoid robots in China were projected to reach around 5,000 units in 2025 before rising to nearly 60,000 units by 2030. However, the current slow pace of real-world industrial adoption and some clumsy performances in sports competitions had also raised questions about their capability, it added.
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