Overview
- Unitree unveiled the humanoid prototype nicknamed “Superman” at the World Robotics Conference and listed on Shanghai’s STAR market, with the company’s IPO opening at 1,100 yuan after a 150.8 yuan offer in a session that briefly jumped 629%.
- The firm says Superman can jump two metres and hit a peak speed of 12.66 m/s, a figure Unitree compared with top human sprint marks in its promotional video.
- Footage of the speed test shows the robot struggles to brake and stop cleanly after reaching top speed, exposing a clear operational limitation in the filmed demo.
- Retail investor demand for the IPO was extreme, with subscriptions reported in the thousands to over 8,000 times available, and Unitree’s recent filings show rapid revenue growth from 393 million yuan in 2024 to 1.7 billion yuan in 2025.
- Analysts and officials say China’s state-backed industrial scale makes mass production plausible but note U.S. import bans on new foreign-made humanoid and quadruped robots and remaining software and autonomy gaps make sustained commercial use and export access uncertain.