AgiBot overtakes Unitree in humanoid shipments before IPOs

AgiBot overtook Unitree Robotics as the largest humanoid robot vendor by shipments in the first half of 2026, according to Smart Analytics Global data reported by the South China Morning Post.

The Shanghai company shipped roughly 8,400 humanoid robots from January to June, giving it 44 percent of the global market, the research firm said. Hangzhou based Unitree shipped about 5,900 units for a 31 percent share.

AgiBot humanoid shipments rose 562 percent year on year, supported by a broader product mix than Unitree, according to SAG. The firm cited AgiBot’s full size bipedal A-series models, compact X-series units and wheeled G-series robots.

Unitree’s humanoid shipments remained more concentrated in its G1 model, with education, research and performance deployments accounting for a substantial share, SCMP reported. That distinction is useful when reading the shipment rankings. Unit counts do not, by themselves, show how many robots are operating in sustained industrial work.

IPO timing raises the stakes

The ranking lands as both companies are pursuing public listings. Unitree is preparing for a listing on Shanghai’s Star Market, China’s main technology board. According to a filing cited by SCMP, the company set its IPO price at 150.8 yuan per share, expecting to raise roughly 6.1 billion yuan (US$904 million).

AgiBot is pursuing a Hong Kong IPO and has hired Citic Securities as a sponsor, with China International Capital Corporation and Morgan Stanley as joint sponsors, according to an earlier SCMP report cited in the article.

The financial profiles appear different. Unitree recorded 1.7 billion yuan (about $238 million) in revenue and 591 million yuan (about $83 million) in adjusted net profit last year, according to its prospectus. AgiBot has not released detailed financials, though founder and chairman Deng Taihua said in April that the three year old company’s revenue surpassed 1 billion yuan (about $140 million) in 2025, with a target of 10 billion yuan (about $1.4 billion) in 2027.

China dominates the early volume market

SAG estimated global humanoid robot shipments at about 19,100 units in the first half, up 272 percent year on year. Chinese manufacturers supplied more than 97 percent of those shipments, while domestic Chinese buyers accounted for more than 85 percent of demand.

Industrial and commercial applications accounted for more than 70 percent of shipments, up from about 50 percent a year earlier. The source identifies factory automation and logistics operators as the main demand drivers.

SAG projects full year global shipments approaching 60,000 units, nearly triple the prior year. The forecast rests on continued government support, funding and China’s manufacturing base. The harder test for vendors will be whether rising shipment numbers translate into repeatable, revenue producing deployments rather than small batch placements and demonstration fleets.

Source: scmp.com