Chinese robotics firm Shenzhen Dobot excites investors with US$27,500 humanoid

Yahoo

18-03-2025

Shenzhen Dobot said on Tuesday it would price its latest Optimus-style humanoid model at 199,000 yuan (US$27,500), which sparked hopes for imminent mass production and drove the company's shares up nearly 28 per cent.
Dobot, known for manufacturing robotic arms for industrial applications, unveiled its Dobot Atom last week, calling it the world's first humanoid robot featuring both dexterous five-finger hands and a straight-knee gait, designed to reduce energy consumption by 42 per cent.
A promotional video on Dobot's website showed the robot serving breakfast by placing toast, lettuce and cherries on a plate, and pouring a cup of milk. The robot can also move objects and put a lid on a cup of hot coffee. The company has begun taking pre-orders for the humanoid, with mass production expected by mid-2025.
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Dobot Atom adds to China's growing array of humanoid robots, as dozens of start-ups race to develop and produce similar technologies.
Dobot Atom has a straight-knee gait that helps reduce its energy consumption. Photo: Handout alt=Dobot Atom has a straight-knee gait that helps reduce its energy consumption. Photo: Handout>
Standing at 1.53 metres (5 feet) tall, Dobot Atom boasts a positioning accuracy of 0.05mm and can adapt to common workbench heights ranging from 70cm to 100cm. Its humanlike gait allowed it to navigate narrow spaces with ease, the company said.
The humanoid is equipped with an embodied intelligence operation model and edge computing power of 1,500 trillion operations per second (TOPS). TOPS is a measure of artificial-intelligence hardware speed. By comparison, Nvidia's GeForce RTX 5080 graphics card, unveiled in January, offered over 1,800 TOPS.
Dobot Atom had been undergoing pilot tests in car factories, electronics manufacturing plants and coffee shops, the company said.
Founded in 2015, Dobot initially specialised in robotic arms but has recently ventured into the field of humanoids. Its first humanoid offering, Dobot Atom, faces intense competition from both domestic and international rivals.
Dobot Atom serves breakfast. Photo: Handout alt=Dobot Atom serves breakfast. Photo: Handout>
Last week, Shenzhen-based UBTech introduced its 299,000 yuan life-size humanoid robot, Tien Kung Xingzhe, intended for research purposes.
While UBTech has not disclosed pricing for its Walker series, used in manufacturing, the company said in a prospectus filed to the Hong Kong stock exchange that it sold 10 units of the Walker series from 2021 to mid-2023, generating total sales of 59.8 million yuan. However, UBTech noted that the "average selling price is not meaningful, as product types and specifications vary significantly within this category".
Another notable player, Shenzhen-based EngineAI, priced its smaller PM01 model at US$13,700. The model recently performed the world's first front flip by a humanoid.
Pricing for the 1.7-metre full-size SE01 has not been revealed, but co-founder Yao Qiyuan indicated that the company aimed to keep the price between 150,000 yuan and 200,000 yuan, according to a report from the Shenzhen Special Zone Daily newspaper.
Hangzhou-based Unitree Robotics, whose 1.8-metre H1 robot garnered national attention after performing folk dances at the Lunar New Year gala on China Central Television, priced the model at 650,000 yuan, while its 1.3-metre G1 model starts at US$16,000.
Internationally, Tesla's general-purpose Optimus robot, which has not yet entered mass production, could also present significant competition.
CEO Elon Musk said during a January earnings call that the production cost of the robot could fall below US$20,000 if annual output reached 1 million units, although final pricing would be determined by market demand. The company aimed to produce several thousand units this year, he said.
This article originally appeared in the South China Morning Post (SCMP), the most authoritative voice reporting on China and Asia for more than a century. For more SCMP stories, please explore the SCMP app or visit the SCMP's Facebook and Twitter pages. Copyright © 2025 South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.
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