On November 28, the 2025 Analyst Conference and the 7th Sina Finance "Golden Kirin" Best Analyst Awards Ceremony was held in Shanghai. The event gathered over 300 authoritative scholars, heads of public and private funds, listed company chairpersons, top fund managers, and chief analysts to discuss the future opportunities of China's capital markets.
During the prestigious "Golden Kirin" awards, CSC's Xu Guangtan team was honored as "Elite Analyst" in the robotics and high-end manufacturing sector. Chief Analyst Xu Guangtan shared insights in an exclusive interview, detailing the development prospects of humanoid robots and investment trends in high-end manufacturing.
Xu outlined a clear commercialization path for humanoid robots, progressing in three stages. Currently, robots have moved from static displays last year to dynamic applications in commercial tours and exhibitions, even sparking a booming rental market. The next phase will see them enter standardized, low-interference factory environments, expanding the industrial robotics market. The ultimate goal is household adoption, which requires high intelligence and versatility for "plug-and-play" functionality in complex settings. Xu believes household robots could create a massive incremental market, with unit prices potentially exceeding 100,000 yuan, comparable to automobiles or consumer electronics.
Regarding applications, Xu noted current R&D focuses on vertical sectors like elderly care, firefighting, and mining—repetitive or high-risk scenarios. He predicts 2026 may mark a turning point for scaled adoption in these specialized fields. These robots excel in specific tasks, with core barriers lying in deep scenario data understanding. Near-term adoption is expected in logistics, automotive manufacturing, and textiles, while firefighting and steel industries may see pilot projects.
Addressing Tesla and XPeng's ventures into humanoid robotics, Xu views this as a natural strategic extension. Automakers benefit from existing expertise in environmental perception, path planning, supply chains (e.g., lead screws, reducers), and sales channels, giving them a competitive edge over startups and accelerating industry growth.
On China's manufacturing role globally, Xu sees dual trends: accelerated overseas expansion and high-end breakthroughs. Many Chinese firms are shifting from exporting products to exporting production capacity, driving machinery equipment exports, with construction and injection molding machinery sectors already leading globally. Meanwhile, domestic substitution remains a long-term theme in high-end areas like industrial machine tools and semiconductor equipment, requiring sustained industry efforts.
For investment opportunities, Xu suggests two key themes for next year: emerging tech-driven sectors like humanoid robots, solid-state battery equipment, nuclear fusion, and PCB equipment with active capital expenditure; and undervalued industries benefiting from overseas expansion, such as construction and injection molding machinery, which may see profit-growth synergy despite low current P/E ratios.
Xu also highlighted risks, including rapid technological shifts in high-end equipment that could disrupt competitive advantages, and potential market saturation from homogeneous products. While recent regulatory guidance aims to prevent overcrowding in similar product segments, investors should maintain forward-looking vigilance.