For China’s blossoming humanoid robotics sector, there’s been little time to relax this summer.
Nearly two years after the Chinese government made it national policy to lead the world in fake humans, a plethora of well-funded robotics firms are scaling production and introducing next-generation models that leave experts wondering if the West can catch up. The People’s Republic is on track to manufacture at least 10,000 humanoids by the end of 2025, fueled by a solid domestic supply chain and aggressive investments.
A truly staggering number of robots continue emerging that make innovations from just a year ago look like quite prototypes. The following are the new Chinese humanoids that have popped up this summer alone that are stronger, faster, and smarter than everything before them.
DroidUp’s Xueba and Walker 02
During the World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC 2025), DroidUp’s new android, named the Xueba-01, officially entered a doctorate program at the Shanghai Theater Academy as part of a publicity stunt.
The startup, launched in 2023, says the new android blends the lifelike qualities of its AI-powered robotic bust and its general-purpose humanoids. The robotics firm’s synthetic humans feature lifelike silicone skin and rich expression simulation capabilities.
According to the South China Morning Post, the student robot is pursuing a 4-year degree focused on traditional Chinese opera. Its name is popular Chinese slang for straight-A student. DroidUp developed the humanoid in collaboration with the University of Shanghai for Science and Technology (USST). As part of an experiment, the AI robot will study emotional expression, storytelling, and human machine dynamics alongside real students.
Also during WAIC 2025, DroidUp launched its lightweight Walker 02 bipedal humanoid robot. The Walker 02, standing 170 cm tall (5’7′) and weighing just 30 kg (66 lbs), is reportedly being tested for scenarios like public security patrols and factory worker training.
DroidUp hasn’t publicly revealed pricing.
PNDbotics’ Adam-U
Another rising Chinese startup pushing its robots into the arts, PNDbotics, recently made headlines when its flagship humanoid robot Adam rocked the stage playing keytar during China’s VoyageX music festival. PND followed the viral performance with the unveiling of its new halfh humanoid platform called Adam-U for collecting and analyzing motion data.
The robot was developed in collaboration with the Beijing based companies Noitom Robotics and Inspire Robots. The bundle combines Noitom’s PNlink suit for capturing body motions and Inspire’s robotic hand tech. The robot has a reported 31 degrees of freedom (DoF), including two in its head and comes with dexterous hands with 6 DoF each.
Preorders are already open with units in stock priced around $45,000 a piece.
Haier’s Hiva Humanoid
AI-powered humanoids are also headed toward the consumer market, especially in China.
Haier, the world’s largest household appliance manufacturer, recently teased its first domestic humanoid assistant. According to reports, the robot is being trained to handle chores like mopping, cooking, and doing laundry.
The robot named Hea appears to be a customized version of RobotEra’s Q5, which features a compact waist design and 44 DoF for tasks requiring human level dexterity.
RobotEra L7
Beijing-based robot era also recently launched its next-gen bipedal humanoid, the L7, which builds on its predecessor, the Star1, adding advanced upper limb mobility. Maxing out at 14.4 km (9 mph), the L7 surpasses the running speed of the Star1, which was named the world’s fastest bipedal humanoid in fall 2024.
The new humanoid boasts 55 DoF across its body and joints that deliver a reported 400 Nm of torque for fast and powerful limb movements. According to RobotEra, the L7 maintains 360-degree spatial awareness with its multi-sensor fusion system that combines panoramic vision, depth sensing, and real-time positional feedback. Its pricing is reportedly around $120,000.
Robot Era also offers a half-body variant with an easy upgrade path toward bipedal. RobotEra’s humanoids integrate with its self-developed XHand, which has 12 DoF and tactile sensors for high-precision manipulation.
Unitree’s $5,900 R1
Unitree Robotics is approaching household name status with its new R1 robot. The Chinese robotics leader launched by Wang Xingxing back in 2016 recently achieved unicorn status as it heads toward an IPO on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange where it will join fellow fake human makers Shenzhen Dobot and UBTECH Robotics.
Unitree introduced its second-generation humanoid a year after its short king, the G1, changed the game, bringing the barrier to entry to an all-time low. The G1’s $16,000 price tag was considered shockingly low in 2024, but it’s since been undercut several times by fellow Chinese upstarts like EngineAI, Noetix Robotics, and AgiBot, as well as Western firms like Silicon Valley’s K-Scale Labs.
Priced starting under $6,000, the R1 bot is 60 percent cheaper than the G1. Standing 127 cm (4’2″), the newcomer is about the same height as the G1, but it’s also 10 kg lighter at just 25 kg (55 lb). According to Unitree, the R1 uses a multimodal large language model to understand what people say and what it sees.
The R1 humanoid boasts a reported 26 DoF across its body, which is three more than the G1 base model. However, high-end versions of the G1, like the ones Unitree uses in its marketing videos, go up to 42 DoF. Unitree says the robots run on smart swappable batteries that operate for about an hour per charge.
The base model can be controlled via a remote and voice commands, while an EDU-focused variant includes customized control through Python, ROS, and custom APIs. The more customizable version, which requires contacting Unitree for pricing, also comes with optional dexterous hands.
Noetix Scales N2 Production
The success of Unitree’s original short king has inspired a plethora of pint-sized humanoids. The Beijing based company Noetix Robotics just reported shipping 105 of its N2 humanoids in July alone.
The robots can run a reported 11.6 km/h (7.2 mph) and pull off continuous back flips. The startup has expanded production capacity and aims to scale to 10,000 units per year.
MagicLab Z1
Wuxi-based MagicLab recently introduced its robot designed to challenge the G1’s dominance.
The Z1 is a scaled-down version of the firm’s flagship general-purpose MagicBot humanoid. The startup is explicitly targeting commercial applications, not just research labs and universities.
It integrates with the startup’s proprietary Magic Hands, which boast 11 DoF and can lift 5 kg (11 lb). Standing 140 cm (4’7″), the Z1 is slightly taller than most of the current wave of short humanoids popping up in China like AgiBot’s latest.
AgiBot Lingxi X2-N
Shanghai-based AgiBot, which says it’s already manufactured more than 1,000 humanoids, designed its new Lingxi X2-N robot to dynamically switch between walking and wheeled locomotion. The robot is about 130 cm (4’2″) tall and weighs just 34 kg (74 lb).
AgiBot founder Peng Zhihui shared a video of him stress testing the new humanoid stability. In the demo, the humanoid also carries a box weighing 5.8 kg (13 lb) while walking up a ramp.
According to AgiBot, the Lingxi is as emotionally intelligent as it is physically capable. It reads facial expressions and voice tones, tailoring responses based on a user’s mood. AgiBot says its self-developed Go-1 AI model empowers the robot to generalize zero shot tasks, meaning it can handle jobs it’s never done before without extra training.
The company has launched multiple versions of the X2, ranging in price from $14K to more than $55K.
Fourier GR-3
Another Shanghai based leader in China’s humanoid robotic scene, Fourier (formerly Fourier Intelligence), is taking a dramatically different approach with its next-generation robot.
Fourier’s Gen 3 flagship humanoid, the GR-3 stands 134 cm (4’5″), which is significantly shorter than its predecessors, the GR-1 and GR-2. It also features a softer and more approachable design with a warm cream-colored exterior, rounded body, and expressive eyes to encourage emotional engagement. Fourier is positioning the robot as a social companion for homes, schools, healthcare, and other public spaces.
SageBot 4-Armed Humanoid
While short humanoids continue to surge in popularity, there are still plenty who believe bigger is better.
Shanghai Sage Intelligence Technology (iSageBot) says its new wheeled robot, SageBot, is the world’s first AI-powered, four-armed humanoid. Its four arms and 52 DoF offer full 360-degree reach, while its dexterous hands are precise enough for millimeter-level tasks.
Shanghai Sage, which specializes in mobile robots and automation systems, says the robot’s advanced vision and force sensing suited for automated assembly, lab setups, and factory operations. The firm hasn’t revealed pricing.
QingLong V3.0
Shanghai is home to the National Local-Joint Human Robot Innovation Center, which just introduced the third iteration of its open-source humanoid, QingLong.
The innovation hub, which was launched in 2023 to accelerate China’s efforts to own the emerging fake humans market, says QingLong V3.0 boasts 60 DoF. The robot, which stands 185 cm (6 feet) and weighs 85 kg (185 lb), features a modular design to meet requirements for different use cases. The innovation hub also unveiled light and wheeled variants.
UBTECH’s Walker S2
In Shenzhen, UBTECH Robotics is preparing to scale production of its next-gen industrial humanoids designed for 24/7 workdays.
The leading Chinese robotics firm, founded in 2012, shocked the Internet this summer when it unveiled its Walker S2 humanoid and its ability to swap out its own battery. According to UBTECH, the humanoid runs on dual 48V lithium batteries, each lasting about two hours walking or four hours standing.
When a robot’s battery starts running low, the humanoid can automatically find the nearest charging station, remove its own battery from its back, and replace it with a charged one. The fully autonomous process takes about three minutes.
The Walker S2 features a sleeker design and lighter build than its predecessor. Standing about 176 cm (5’3″) and weighing 43 kg (95 lb), its dual pure RGB cameras provide humanlike stereoscopic vision that UBTECH says excels in complex environments.
UBTECH’s Walker humanoids have already been deployed to Chinese automotive manufacturers like BYD, Nio, and Zeekr. A rollout at Foxconn facilities to handle sorting, materials movement, and inspection work is underway.
UBTECH has not publicly revealed pricing.
Shenzhen Humanoid Hub
The booming Chinese tech hub of Shenzhen is home to several major players in humanoid robotics, including:
- EngineAI, which is planning the world’s first full-sized humanoid robot boxing tournament,
- EV maker Xpeng, which has introduced its IRON humanoids into its car showrooms,
- Dobot, which has started mass producing its $27K Atom humanoids,
- Pudu Robotics, which has already shipped more than 100,000 of its mobile robots,
- DIGIT, which is pushing its hyper-realistic Xia Lan android into the service sector,
- Leju Robot, which has developed a multi-robot collaboration system for logistics with its Huawei HarmonyOS-powered Kuavo robots,
- Lumos Robotics, which recently demonstrated its LUS2 humanoid’s ability to get up in under a second.
LimX Oli
LimX Dynamics, which is known for its agile quadrupeds and bipeds, just officially made its flagship full-sized robotic humanoid, Oli, available for preorder.
The robot, which was known as the CL-3 during its development, stands about 165 cm (5’5″) and boasts 31 DoF. LimX emphasizes the robot’s modular design so it can upgraded and adapted for future automations in places like warehouses and factories. It comes with optional grippers or dexterous hands.
According to LimX, the robot can learn by watching movements in Internet videos. LimX’s humanoid, which is widely considered China’s answer to Atlas by Boston Dynamics, is available for preorder starting around $22,000 within the mainland. LimX says global sales will start soon.
Cyborg R01
A newer Shenzhen firm, Cyborg Robotics, brought its first heavy-duty industrial humanoid, the Cyborg R01, to WAIC 2025 in Shanghai.
The full-sized biped boasts 62 DoF and dexterous hands with 16 DoF each. The startup says it’s developing the humanoid for high-risk, high-load industrial environments.
DexForce W1 Pro
Another Shenzhen firm focused on industrial automation, DexForce, recently introduced its second-generation humanoid robot, the W1 Pro.
DexForce calls the wheeled humanoid a high-performance platform with its 34 powered joints. Its dual arms have 7 DoF each and can lift up to 10 kg (22 lb). According to DexForce, the W1 Pro operates for up to 8 hours per battery charge.
KEENON XMAN Biped
Another humanoid debuting at the World AI conference, the XMAN F1 by Shanghai-based KEENON Robotics, served mixed drinks and popcorn to attendees.
KEENON, which leads the global commercial service robotics market with more than 100,000 units sold, hasn’t disclosed pricing for its bipedal humanoid. Its other robots start around $13,000, but the latest entry is surely much pricier than that.
The Future of Humanoids
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