AI² Robotics becomes the latest Chinese robotics unicorn looking to go public

A relatively new Chinese robotics startup, AI² Robotics, is considering going public in Hong Kong, after a recent funding round that doubled its valuation to nearly $3 billion in June. 

Some people with knowledge of the matter revealed Tuesday that AI² Robotics is currently in talks with an adviser for an initial public offering, expected to take place next year. 

The Shenzhen-based unicorn is only three years old, founded in early 2023. The CEO, Yandong Guo, had disclosed last September that the company aimed to go public within one or two years. 

AI² Robotics pursues IPO after a $736 million raise

AI² Robotics has not formally confirmed a filing for a Hong Kong listing. However, it’s worth noting that it conducted a joint-stock restructuring in April, which is usually seen as a structural precursor to public listings.

Two months after the reform, the company raised nearly 5 billion yuan ($736 million), pushing its valuation past 20 billion yuan (over $2.9 billion).

It builds wheeled humanoid robots, which it calls AlphaBot, paired with an in-house vision-language-action system named Alpha Brain, which Guo says is their “key advantage.”

According to Guo, AI² Robotics has been a unicorn even in the last year. In September, he told Reuters that the company was “looking at 10 times growth (in revenue) pretty much every year.”

More Chinese robot makers head to Hong Kong for IPO

AI² Robotics is now on the growing list of Chinese robotics startups pursuing a listing in Hong Kong, as capital needs for scaling manufacturing continue to rise. 

In fact, Caixin Global reported Tuesday that up to 50 Chinese robotics startups are currently looking to list in Hong Kong or the Chinese mainland.

Among these companies are leaders such as Unitree Robotics and AGIBOT. 

Earlier in July, Cryptopolitan reported that Unitree Robotics had been cleared for its planned IPO this August. The company is expected to be valued at more than 50 billion yuan ($7.4 billion) following the debut. 

AGIBOT, the largest Chinese robot vendor, plans to list in Hong Kong later this year. The company targets a valuation of HK$40 billion to HK$50 billion ($5.14 billion to $6.4 billion), according to people familiar with the matter.

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