Unitree's shares rose more than 600% on their debut on China's stock market, reaching a high of 1,100 yuan before paring gains to about 500%. The company, founded in 2016, shipped over 5,500 humanoid robots in the previous year. Analysts project the market for human-like robots to grow from roughly $2 billion in 2025 to $300 billion by 2035. Investors showed strong demand, with the tranche allocated to non‑professional investors being oversubscribed. Unitree is one of the few publicly listed humanoid robot makers; private rivals include AgiBot, while UBTech is listed in Hong Kong. Several other Chinese firms, such as Deep Robotics and Leju Robotics, are preparing for IPOs. Founder and CEO Wang Xingxing owns about a fifth of the company, a stake valued at more than $12 billion after the price surge. The listing coincided with the World Robot Conference in Beijing, where hundreds of companies presented new products. In June, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission prohibited imports of future foreign-made humanoid and quadruped robots on national security grounds. The Pentagon subsequently added Unitree to a list of Chinese military companies, describing it as a contributor to the Chinese defence industrial base, though the company says its robots are intended for civilian use. Unitree is supported by large Chinese technology firms including Tencent and Alibaba.