UBTech Robotics
UBTech is a Shenzhen robotics company listed in Hong Kong in December 2023, known for consumer Alpha robots and the Walker humanoid line. Its Walker S industrial humanoids are in Chinese car and electronics plants and the company reported a Walker S order book above CNY 800 million in 2025.
- Type
- startup
- Headquarters
- Shenzhen, Guangdong, China
- Founded
- 2012
- Founders
- Zhou Jian
- Status
- active
- Employees (est.)
- n/d
- Disclosed funding
- n/d
- Valuation
- n/d
- Listed
- HKEX: 9880
- Website
- ubtrobot.com
What the record says.
UBTech Robotics was founded in Shenzhen in 2012 by Zhou Jian, known in English as James Zhou, who remains chairman and CEO. It grew on the small Alpha consumer humanoids and education robots and listed in Hong Kong in December 2023. Its full-size Walker line began as a service humanoid and turned industrial with Walker S, trialled on Chinese car assembly lines from 2024.
The third-generation Walker S2 entered what the company calls mass production on 17 November 2025, with a first batch of several hundred units for car, electronics and battery plants. UBTech named BYD, Dongfeng Liuzhou, Geely, FAW-Volkswagen, Audi FAW, BAIC, Foxconn and SF Express as customers and said Walker orders since early 2025 exceeded CNY 800 million, including CNY 159 million for a data collection centre in Zigong. Capacity targets are 5,000 units in 2026 and 10,000 in 2027.
The 2025 accounts, published in April 2026, are the hardest data on any humanoid maker. Revenue rose 53.3 percent to CNY 2.01 billion; full-size humanoid revenue went from CNY 35.6 million to CNY 821 million, 41 percent of the total, on 1,079 units delivered. Gross margin reached 37.7 percent and the net loss narrowed 32 percent to CNY 790 million. Part of the order book is data-collection work rather than production lines, and the company is still loss-making.
8 humanoids tracked.
Tien Kung Xingzhe
Tien Kung Xingzhe combines the lower body of X-Humanoid's Tiangong with UBTech's upper body for the scientific research market. It launched in March 2025 at a list price of about CNY 299,000.
UBTech Alpha series
The Alpha series of 40 cm hobby humanoids built UBTech's early business and funded its later full-size Walker program. Alpha 1S robots performed on the 2016 Spring Festival Gala.
UBTech Walker (2018 and 2019)
Walker was UBTech's first full-size humanoid. The CES 2018 version had legs and a torso screen but no arms; the CES 2019 version added arms and hands with 36 degrees of freedom.
UBTech Walker C
Walker C is a UBTech humanoid aimed at commercial service settings such as reception and exhibitions rather than factories.
UBTech Walker S
Walker S was the first industrial version of the Walker line, unveiled on UBTech's Hong Kong listing day in December 2023. It was the first Chinese humanoid to enter a car factory training program (NIO, February 2024).
UBTech Walker S1
Walker S1 is the 2024 industrial humanoid that UBTech placed in several Chinese car and electronics plants. It is 172 cm tall, carries up to 15 kg and works with AMRs for material handling.
UBTech Walker S2
Walker S2 is UBTech's 2025 industrial humanoid and the first to swap its own battery, allowing round-the-clock operation. It has 52 degrees of freedom and is the product behind UBTech's large 2025 order announcements.
UBTech Walker X
Walker X was UBTech's 2021 service humanoid with 41 degrees of freedom and a 3 km/h walking speed. It served as a guide robot at the China pavilion of Expo 2020 Dubai.
Rounds and valuations.
| Date | Round | Amount | Valuation | Lead | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | strategic | n/a | n/d | UBTech raised additional capital through several Hong Kong share placements in 2025 to fund Walker S mass production; individual placement sizes to be verified. | |
| 29 Dec 2023 | IPO | $130M | n/d | UBTech Robotics listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (9880.HK) at HKD 90 per share, raising about HKD 1.0 billion (roughly USD 130 million); the first listed Chinese humanoid maker. |
* reported, not confirmed by the company.
At customer sites.
| Robot | Customer | Site | Since | Status | Units |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UBTech Walker S2 | Multiple (BYD, Foxconn, Dongfeng Liuzhou, Zeekr and others named by UBTech) | Various factories in China, China | Oct 2025 | active | n/d |
| UBTech Walker S1 | BAIC Group | BAIC plant (location not disclosed), China | Dec 2024 | unclear | n/d |
| UBTech Walker S1 | Zeekr (Geely) | Zeekr 5G smart factory, Ningbo, China | Nov 2024 | active | n/d |
| UBTech Walker S1 | Audi FAW NEV | Audi FAW NEV plant, Changchun, China | Nov 2024 | pilot | n/d |
| UBTech Walker S1 | BYD | BYD plant (location not disclosed), China | Oct 2024 | active | n/d |
| UBTech Walker S | Dongfeng Liuzhou Motor | Dongfeng Liuzhou Motor plant, Liuzhou, Guangxi, China | Feb 2024 | pilot | 20 |
| UBTech Walker S1 | Foxconn | Foxconn factory (location not disclosed), China | 2024 | pilot | n/d |
| UBTech Walker S1 | Geely Auto | Geely plants (in addition to the Zeekr brand plant in Ningbo), China | 2024 | unclear | n/d |
| UBTech Walker S | Nio | Nio factory, Hefei, China | Dec 2023 | unclear | n/d |
Milestones.
UBTech Walker S2 swaps its own battery
UBTech unveils Walker S2, an industrial humanoid that can autonomously exchange its own battery packs in about three minutes for continuous operation. UBTech reports Walker S2 orders worth hundreds of millions of yuan by the end of 2025.
UBTech runs multiple Walker S1 robots cooperating at Zeekr's plant
UBTech shows dozens of Walker S1 robots at Zeekr's 5G smart factory in Ningbo doing collaborative sorting, handling and precision assembly, coordinated by a swarm intelligence system it calls BrainNet. It is presented as the first multi humanoid collaborative training in a car factory.
UBTech Walker S1 starts training at BYD's factory
UBTech says Walker S1 has entered a BYD plant for practical training in handling and inspection tasks, and reports orders from several automakers. UBTech states Walker S has more than 500 units in its order pipeline from carmakers.
UBTech Walker S enters Nio's factory for a pilot
UBTech, listed in Hong Kong in December 2023, sends its Walker S industrial humanoid to Nio's electric vehicle plant to practise door lock and seat belt checks. It is the first reported humanoid pilot at a Chinese carmaker.
Deposits, lead times and warranties: reading a humanoid order sheet
Of 42 buy records, 2 publish a deposit, 1 a warranty, 1 a shipping cost and none a lead time in weeks. The order sheet for a humanoid is mostly blank, and the blanks are where the money goes.
How long does a humanoid robot actually run
22 of 182 humanoids on record quote a runtime. The claims run from 1 to 8 hours with a median of 4, and of the 44 machines you can order, 4 say anything at all.
Startups, automakers, universities: who builds humanoids
108 makers, nine kinds. Startups hold 37 of the 44 humanoids you can order. Automakers, universities, big tech, conglomerates and NASA hold 45 robots between them and sell none of them.
Who is paying for humanoids: 69 funding rounds
Our funding record holds 69 entries. Take out the government funds, the acquisitions and the IPOs and $6.33 billion of disclosed private money remains. 37 percent of it went to companies with no robot on record.
China builds, America demos: what 108 makers tell you
Chinese makers account for 65 of the 182 humanoids in our record and 31 of the 44 you can order. American makers hold the money, the research and most of the autonomy claims, and sell you almost nothing.
How much does a humanoid robot cost in 2026?
Thirty-five humanoids in our record carry a price, from $299 to $250,000 with a median of $15,000. What the money buys changes completely at each band, and so does how much you should trust the number.
Sources
- 01UBTech official siteUBTech
- 02
- 03UBTECH Humanoid Revenue Surges in 2025 ResultsHumanoid.guide
- 04