As the Year of the Horse in 2026 begins, the humanoid robot sector has witnessed a concentrated wave of financing activities. On February 11, Xinghai Tu completed a Series B funding round of 1 billion yuan. On February 23, Zhi Pingfang secured over 1 billion yuan in its Series B+ round. Just one day later on February 24, Qianxun Intelligent announced it had recently closed two consecutive funding rounds totaling nearly 2 billion yuan. These three leading companies have successively obtained substantial financing. With these additions, along with existing players such as Yushu Technology, Zhiyuan Robot, and Yinhe Tongyong, a total of six domestic companies have now entered the "billion-yuan valuation club" for humanoid robots.
Capital from various sources—including industrial investors, state-backed mother funds, top-tier private equity firms, and existing shareholders—continues to increase investments and compete for entry. They are casting votes of confidence with real money, supporting companies' technological pathways and commercial prospects. The sector's development momentum and capital support have remained strong since the start of the year.
The latest entrant to the billion-yuan club, Xinghai Tu, officially joined this tier following its 1 billion yuan Series B funding round completed on February 11, becoming a new unicorn in the field. The timing of this major financing coincided with the widespread exposure humanoid robots gained during the Spring Festival Gala, which elevated public attention and added greater industry significance to the funding outcome.
Zhang Yujia, Market Ecology Director at Xinghai Tu, noted that the national-level exposure from the gala not only popularized awareness of humanoid robots but also reinforced market recognition of the sector's value. This has provided positive support for companies transitioning from technical validation to large-scale implementation. Looking at 2026 as a critical year for the commercialization of humanoid robots, Zhang believes that rising industry attention will accelerate the Matthew Effect, concentrating resources toward leading firms with core technologies, mass-production capabilities, and clear paths to capitalization.
Regarding the use of the 1 billion yuan in funding, the company stated that the capital will be primarily allocated to iterative R&D of embodied foundation models and data system development. A portion will also be reserved to meet long-term competitive needs for computing power and high-quality data. Diversified shareholder support—including industrial capital deepening collaboration in smart manufacturing and automotive sectors, follow-on investments from existing shareholders affirming execution capabilities, and participation from international funds—will aid overseas expansion based on the company's existing developer base.
Besides Xinghai Tu, both Zhi Pingfang and Qianxun Intelligent also disclosed financing progress and updated valuations shortly after the holiday. Zhi Pingfang announced that after completing seven rounds of funding in the hundreds of millions within half a year in 2025, it secured five additional major rounds, totaling 12 rounds in one year, making it the global leader in fundraising pace amid a cautious capital environment. Qianxun Intelligent highlighted its fully self-developed full-stack technological moat and vast process data accumulation, which not only establish industry barriers but also enable a shift from selling hardware to offering full-stack capabilities in perception, decision-making, and execution. This allows rapid customization for different production lines and supports global scaling.
On February 16, Yuejiang Collaborative Robots appeared in the 2026 Spring Festival Gala micro-musical "Every Ray of Light." Unlike the four high-profile humanoid robot participants, Yuejiang was the fifth robotic company on stage and the only one showcasing collaborative robots, reflecting a pragmatic choice in the gala's "tech showcase."
The Yuejiang team pointed out that the national-stage appearance marked a key shift in public perception of robots, breaking the stereotype that robots are merely industrial tools and demonstrating the technical maturity of domestic collaborative robots. Xie Kaixuan, Market Director at Yuejiang Robot, stated that as a company focused on collaborative robots, it has deployed over 100,000 units globally, ranking first in the Chinese market and among the top worldwide. The company aims to transition humanoid robots from "stage stars" for technical display to practical products serving production and daily life scenarios.
After the gala's buzz, Yuejiang shifted focus to real-world deployment and technical iteration. Before the Spring Festival, its Atom humanoid robot was put into use at a Shenzhen cinema for unmanned autonomous operation. It later appeared at the APEC "China Year" event in Guangzhou Haixinsha, undergoing commercial validation in live scenarios. The team emphasized that while the gala provided a catalyst, technical maturity and commercial viability remain the core drivers of sector development. Post-holiday, the company is optimizing the Atom robot based on operational data from cinema use, advancing quality assurance policies, and starting production for orders from Asia-Pacific and Europe.
Looking ahead to 2026, a crucial period for humanoid robot commercialization, the team revealed plans to focus on mass production and delivery, expand diverse application scenarios, and strengthen technological self-sufficiency to meet practical manufacturing needs, aiming for a pragmatic breakthrough in the sector.
The breakout exposure of robots during the 2026 Spring Festival Gala has brought sustained attention benefits to the industry. This visibility is gradually penetrating various aspects of industrial development, optimizing the allocation of key elements such as capital and R&D.
Xiang Ligang, Chairman of the Zhongguancun Information Consumption Alliance, commented that increased social attention has a notable impact on financing—activating investment interest in the sector. Companies with core competitiveness find it easier to secure funds, which in turn supports R&D and technical iteration.
Amid this heightened attention, shipment patterns in the humanoid robot sector have drawn interest. According to IDC's 2025 global humanoid robot shipment data released in 2026, industry-wide shipments reached 17,700 units, with leading firms like Zhiyuan Robot and Yushu Technology ranking at the top. However, Yushu Technology later clarified discrepancies in statistical methodologies, emphasizing the need for more precise metrics to evaluate company shipment performance.
Among the six companies in the "billion-yuan club," Zhiyuan Robot (valuation around 15 billion yuan), Yushu Technology (valuation around 12 billion yuan), and Yinhe Tongyong (valuation around 20 billion yuan) have made it onto IDC's list based on shipment scale. Meanwhile, Xinghai Tu, Zhi Pingfang, and Qianxun Intelligent have achieved key breakthroughs in technology R&D and scenario validation, albeit following different development rhythms.
From a macro perspective, Zhang Yi, CEO of iiMedia Research, interpreted the robotics boom as a concentrated release of industrial implementation opportunities driven by advancements in AI technology, occurring as China's economy undergoes a critical transition between old and new growth drivers. This trend is expected to not only steer capital toward new productive forces like robotics and AI but also bolster industry confidence and direction in R&D investment and commercialization, supported by China's ample talent pool in research and development.
From an industry development standpoint, the catalyzing effect of increased attention is already becoming evident. Leading companies including Xinghai Tu, Zhi Pingfang, and Qianxun Intelligent are continuing to focus on core areas such as embodied foundation model development and scenario validation, steadily guiding the humanoid robot sector from buzz-driven visibility to value-driven implementation.