A robot dog that is made by Hangzhou-based Unitree Robotics. [Photo/tidenews.com.cn]

Hangzhou-based robot manufacturer and unicorn Unitree Robotics has announced it will submit an application for an Initial Public Offering or IPO of its shares between October and December, with investment bank and broker CITIC Securities as its sponsor.

The company, valued at 12–15 billion yuan ($1.68–2.10 billion) after its June C-round of financing, is expected to target a listing on the Shanghai Stock Exchange Science and Technology Innovation Board.

Founder and CEO Wang Xingxing controls 34.76 percent of the shares, while major investors include Meituan (8.25 percent), Sequoia China (7.13 percent) and recent backers Tencent, Alibaba and Geely.

Analysts estimate that Unitree's market capitalization — the total valuation of the shares based on its price per share  —  could reach 50–100 billion yuan post-listing, lifting Wang's personal wealth beyond 10 billion yuan.

In 2024, Unitree reported revenue above 1 billion yuan and it had around 1,000 employees. Its product mix includes quadruped robots (65 percent), humanoid robots (30 percent) and components (5 percent), with nearly half of its sales overseas.

Responding to foreign claims of a "backdoor" in its Go1 robot dog, the company stressed it has never embedded unauthorized access, reaffirming data security compliance.

Unitree holds 60 percent of the global consumer quadruped market, with over 50,000 Go1 units sold, but faces rising competition from domestic peers in quadruped and humanoid robotics.

The nimble G1 robot demonstrates a spinning kick. [Photo/Unitree Robotics]