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).
We have not sat down with this one. The score below is computed from the data we hold, and the facts on this page are sourced. It is not on sale, so there is nothing to recommend.
How the score is built
Capability is what the machine physically does. Value compares it with others at a similar price, not with the whole market. Buyability asks whether you can really order one. Ecosystem is the software and community around it. Proof is what it has done in the field, which is where most humanoids score badly and should.
What people buy instead.
- Status
- In pilots
- Category
- industrial
- First revealed
- 29 December 2023
- Form
- bipedal
- Height
- n/a
- Weight
- n/a
- Payload
- n/a
- Degrees of freedom
- 41
- Battery
- n/a
- Runtime
- n/a
- Walking speed
- n/a
- Actuation
- electric
- Units deployed (est.)
- not disclosed
- Teleoperation
- unknown
Where it stands
Piloted at NIO's Hefei plant from February 2024 and (as Walker S Lite) at Zeekr's Ningbo plant in 2024; superseded by Walker S1.
What stands out
- First humanoid trained in a NIO plant
- Walker S Lite variant piloted at Zeekr
Autonomy, observed
Seat belt inspection and door lock checks on NIO's assembly line (video, February 2024); box carrying at Zeekr (June 2024).
Hands, sensors, brain
- Hands: five-finger hands
Price and volume
No public price.
Index position
In the Humanoid Index, which ranks on shipped reality rather than value for money, UBTech Walker S sits at #53 of 107 with 38 points: deployment 20/50, autonomy 10/30, availability 8/20. See that method.
Where UBTech Walker S works.
| Customer | Site | Sector | Task | Since | Status | Units | Autonomy |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dongfeng Liuzhou Motor | Dongfeng Liuzhou Motor plant, Liuzhou, Guangxi, China | automotive | Safety belt checks, door lock checks, oil filling and label application on the assembly line | Feb 2024 | pilot | 20 | mixed |
| Nio | Nio factory, Hefei, China | automotive | Practical training on door lock, seat belt and headlight cover checks and label application | Dec 2023 | unclear | n/d | mixed |
Milestones.
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.
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.
What humanoid robots can actually do in 2026
Of 182 humanoid robots on record, 117 have a human in the loop, 33 have ever worked at a customer site and none has a verified fleet count. Here is what that leaves.
Where humanoids actually work: 52 deployments, counted
We track 52 humanoid deployments at named sites. Eighteen are in car plants, exactly half are live, and six say how many robots turned up. Those six add up to 41 machines.
Other robots by UBTech Robotics.
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 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.
Sources
- 01UBTech Walker S pageUBTech
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