Chinese Humanoid Robot corporations are moving one after another to list on the securities market. With the Chinese government providing policy support to foster the Humanoid Robot industry, corporations are also seeking large-scale fundraising. Expectations are rising that Chinese corporations' competitiveness in the global Humanoid Robot market could strengthen further.
According to the robotics industry on the 7th, the previous day the offering price for Chinese Humanoid corporation Unitree, which is conducting an IPO on the Shanghai Stock Exchange's STAR Market (a market dedicated to science and technology stocks), was set at about 150.8 yuan (about $22.34). Based on that offering price, the market capitalization is about 61 billion yuan (about $9.04 billion · about 12.8 trillion won).
According to the prospectus Unitree submitted to the Shanghai Stock Exchange, the total number of shares outstanding after listing will be 404,464,340. The number of shares offered is 40,446,434, or 10% of the total.
Earlier, Unitree conducted a two-day book-building process for institutional investors starting on the 5th to determine the final offering price. After an online investor relations (IR) session, it plans to accept retail subscriptions starting on the 10th.
Unitree received approval to apply for listing from the Shanghai Stock Exchange in March and obtained final registration approval for listing from Chinese securities regulators last month. The review period for the listing took 104 days, the shortest since the introduction of the preliminary review system on the STAR Market. This is the first time a Humanoid corporation will list on the STAR Market.
Other Chinese Humanoid corporations are also preparing to list in succession. China's Deep Robotics, which manufactures the Humanoid "DR01," and Leju Robotics received listing approval in May from the Shanghai Stock Exchange's STAR Market and the Shenzhen Stock Exchange's ChiNext, respectively.
In Hong Kong as well, listing procedures for Chinese Humanoid corporations are underway. AgiBot said last month that its listing process is proceeding at the Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (HKEX). The industry says AgiBot is expected to complete the listing process in early Oct.
In addition, Humanoid Robot firm EngineAI is said to have confidentially filed for an IPO with the Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing. Shanghai-based Coowa is also considering a Hong Kong listing and is reportedly planning to submit a listing application within the next two to three months.
These IPOs by Chinese robot corporations stem from the Chinese government's strategic support for Humanoid commercialization. In June, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology announced the "Humanoid Robot and Physical AI Special Action" and unveiled a plan to secure the capacity to deploy 10,000 Humanoids by the end of this year. To commercialize Humanoids, it will develop service-type Humanoid business models and provide financial support for them.
Kwon Young-bae, a researcher at Mirae Asset Securities, said, "China aims to grow six strategic emerging industries, including robots, to more than 10 trillion yuan by 2030," adding, "To that end, it is strengthening the institutional base by mobilizing not only the Shanghai Stock Exchange's STAR Market and the Shenzhen Stock Exchange's ChiNext, but also the Hong Kong market, to expand specialized listing tracks for technology corporations."
He added, "If the funds raised through listings are used to expand research and development and mass production capacity, China's competitiveness in the global Humanoid industry is expected to strengthen further."