US Robotics Stocks to Watch in the Second Half of 2026

TradingKey - In 2026, humanoid robots are transitioning from small-batch orders to large-scale mass production, and Tesla ( TSLA )'s Optimus has entered the production line retooling phase, while NVIDIA ( NVDA) has partnered with Unitree Robotics to release the world's first open humanoid robot reference design. The pace of commercialization is faster than most expected, presenting a long-term sector in the making for investors.

Core Players in Humanoid Robotics

Tesla is an unavoidable investment target in this space. According to a Counterpoint Research report, Tesla is transferring the technology and mass-production experience accumulated from electric vehicles to the Optimus project. Optimus V3 is expected to enter mass production in the second half of 2026, and the former Model S/X production line at the Fremont factory has been converted into a dedicated line for Optimus, with production scheduled to begin between late July and August, targeting an initial annual capacity of 1 million units.

Piper Sandler pointed out that Tesla's existing business can already support a stock price of about $400 per share, and Optimus has not yet been factored into its valuation—representing both upside potential and risk. The constraints are equally apparent. In the initial phase of mass production, the per-unit cost of Optimus V3 still exceeds $60,000, and a balance has yet to be struck among the performance, cost, and reliability of its dexterous hands; if the timeline slips, supply chain orders could be left hanging.

Nvidia is positioned as the infrastructure for robotics. During his visit to South Korea in June 2026, Jensen Huang reached an agreement with LG Group on humanoid robot development cooperation and expanded partnership with Doosan Group in physical AI and AI factory infrastructure.

Nvidia, in partnership with Unitree Robotics, released NVIDIA Isaac GR00T, providing the Jetson Thor computing platform, while Unitree provides the H2 Plus robot body.

List of Listed Companies

The following are robotics-related listed companies worth watching in 2026 (data as of June 18, 2026):

Symbotic ( SYM ) is a leading company in AI-driven warehouse robotics solutions. For the second quarter of fiscal year 2026, revenue was $676 million, up 23% year-over-year, and net income was $9 million, turning profitable year-over-year. The analyst consensus price target is $65.23.

Teradyne ( TER ) operates in both semiconductor testing and robotics. In the first quarter of 2026, revenue was $1.282 billion, up 87% year-over-year, and net income was $399 million, up 303% year-over-year. In its robotics business, the company is advancing physical AI automation products such as the MiR1200 pallet jack and UR AI Trainer.

Teradyne was recently added to the Nasdaq 100 Index. The average analyst price target is $397.20. The main risks are a slowdown in downstream foundry capital expenditures and cyclical fluctuations in the semiconductor industry.

Rockwell Automation ( ROK ) recently saw its stock price hit an all-time high of $469.35, with a market capitalization of approximately $52.3 billion. The company announced a $1 billion share buyback. InvestingPro indicates that the stock is somewhat overvalued relative to its fair value, with macroeconomic weakness and tariff policy uncertainty acting as the main drag factors.

Intuitive Surgical ( ISRG ) is the company with the highest market share in the surgical robotics sector. As of the first quarter of 2026, the cumulative global installations of the "da Vinci 5" exceeded 1,400 units. In 2025, procedure volume was approximately 3.15 million, up 18% year-over-year, and the company expects a growth rate of 13.5% to 15.5% for 2026. The average procedure volume of the fifth-generation "da Vinci 5" increased by 11% compared to its predecessor. Changes in US healthcare policies, capital expenditure pressures in Europe and Japan, and domestic competition in China are the main uncertainties.

UiPath ( PATH ) is pivoting from robotic process automation to agentic automation. In the first quarter of fiscal year 2027, revenue was $418 million, up 17% year-over-year, with annual recurring revenue reaching $1.9 billion, achieving GAAP profitability in a first quarter for the first time.

Star unlisted companies

For investors unable to directly invest in unlisted companies, understanding these enterprises helps in identifying investment opportunities across the industry's upstream and downstream.

NEURA Robotics Founded in 2019, it is the largest humanoid robotics company in Europe by funding scale. In June 2026, it completed a Series C funding round of up to $1.4 billion, led by Tether, with participation from Amazon, NVIDIA, Qualcomm, Bosch, Schaeffler, and others, reaching a post-money valuation of approximately $7 billion. With 1 billion euros in backlog orders, its flagship product, the 4NE-1, is priced at around 98,000 euros, with mass shipments expected to begin by the end of 2026. Its core technologies are its self-developed AI layer, AURA, and its data training platform, Neuraverse.

Figure AI Founded in 2022, it is currently the world's most highly valued humanoid robotics company, with a valuation of $39 billion. In September 2025, it completed a Series C funding round of over $1 billion, with investors including NVIDIA, Intel Capital, and Qualcomm Ventures. The company follows a full-stack self-development path; after terminating its partnership with OpenAI in 2025, it pivoted to independently developing its end-to-end AI model, Helix. Its third-generation product, Figure 03, was released in May 2025.

Boston Dynamics An established player in the robotics sector, its product lineup includes the quadruped robot Spot, the warehouse robot Stretch, and the humanoid robot Atlas. The mass-production version of Atlas features 56 degrees of freedom and a lifting capacity of 50 kg, with Hyundai Motor holding a majority stake. The mass-production version was unveiled at CES in January 2026, with the entire year's capacity already allocated to Hyundai Motor and Google DeepMind.

Agility Robotics Founded in 2015, it is the first company to achieve commercial deployment of humanoid robots. Its flagship product, Digit, targets logistics and warehousing scenarios, with customers including Ford Motor. The company completed a $150 million Series B funding round in April 2022 and successfully completed a $400 million Series C funding round in 2025, with its current valuation surpassing $2.1 billion.

Physical Intelligence Founded in 2024, the company focuses on developing general-purpose robot control models, with a positioning that leans toward research rather than commercialization, and is referred to by some industry insiders as the 'OpenAI of robotics.' In November 2025, it completed a $600 million funding round at a valuation of $5.6 billion. The round was led by Google parent Alphabet's ( GOOGL )'s CapitalG, with other investors including Jeff Bezos, OpenAI, and Sequoia Capital.

Robotics sector-related ETFs

For investors who prefer not to handpick individual stocks, robotics-themed ETFs provide options for diversified allocation.

For investors whose allocation focus is on the humanoid robotics supply chain, BOTZ and the KraneShares humanoid robotics ETF are worth prioritizing.

Investment Strategy Reference

Based on the analysis above, investments in the robotics sector in 2026 can be approached through three main strategies.

First, track core hardware platforms and infrastructure. Tesla dominates mass manufacturing, while NVIDIA builds out the chip and software ecosystem; the key variables for these two core themes are the speed of technological iteration and the pace of production ramp-up.

Second, focus on leading companies in specific niche segments. Symbotic in warehouse logistics, Intuitive Surgical in surgical robotics, and Rockwell Automation in industrial automation are poised to benefit from rising automation penetration, presenting relatively clear growth theses.

Third, the financing dynamics and technological progress of private companies are worth monitoring. NEURA Robotics securing investments from Amazon and NVIDIA, Figure AI's proprietary full-stack development path, and Physical Intelligence's focus on general-purpose control models provide valuable benchmarks for upstream targets such as chips, AI models, and core components.

For investors who are bullish on the sector but find it difficult to evaluate individual stocks, ETFs offer a lower-barrier entry point. As the technological roadmap for the robotics industry has not yet converged and some companies are slow to realize earnings, allocations should be aligned with individual risk tolerance.