Chinese Robotics Stocks Surge 75% Amid AI Rally and Humanoid Robot Advances

Chinese robotics stocks have surged 75% in the past year, quadrupling the gain in the CSI 300 Index. The Solactive China Humanoid Robotics Index has risen 3.5% in July, its best month since February. The market is expected to exceed $5 trillion by 2050, with China leading the development charge due to low prices and strong government support. Investors are looking for new catalysts for the rally sparked by DeepSeek's AI advances.

Chinese robotics stocks have surged 75% in the past year, quadrupling the gain in the CSI 300 Index. The Solactive China Humanoid Robotics Index has risen 3.5% in July, its best month since February. The market is expected to exceed $5 trillion by 2050, with China leading the development charge due to low prices and strong government support. Investors are looking for new catalysts for the rally sparked by DeepSeek's AI advances.

The Solactive China Humanoid Robotics Index has surged about 75% over the past year, quadrupling the gain in the CSI 300 Index [1]. This surge is driven by several factors, including the impressive performances of robots at a recent Shanghai conference and the launch of a humanoid robot priced under $6,000. Supply deals with major names such as Tesla Inc. and China tech giant BYD Co. are also contributing to the gains in shares of relatively little-known companies.

Analysts are cautious about predicting which robotic companies will be the winners. David Choa, head of Greater China equities at BNP Paribas Asset Management Asia Ltd., noted, "They come fast and then they go fast. However, I feel like it’s still early in the cycle that we can still participate the first wave" [1]. The global humanoids market is expected to exceed $5 trillion by 2050, with China currently leading the development charge due to strong government support and affordability [1].

Recent developments include the planned Shanghai listing of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.-backed Unitree Robotics, the maker of the sub-$6,000 humanoid. Component makers Lens Technology Co. and Zhejiang Sanhua Intelligent Controls Co. have seen their shares rise in Hong Kong since completing recent second listings. Chinese humanoid robot maker UBTech Robotics Corp. has climbed more than 60% in Hong Kong this year, while Swancor Advanced Materials Co. has seen its shares soar more than 10-fold in the past three weeks [1].

NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) has placed orders for 300,000 H20 chipsets with contract manufacturer TSMC, driven by Chinese demand. This move comes after the Trump administration reversed its ban on exporting H20 chips to China [2]. The H20 chipset has less computing power than Nvidia’s H100 or its new Blackwell series sold in markets outside China. Despite the potential of NVDA as an investment, certain AI stocks offer greater upside potential and carry less downside risk [2].

While profitability for these companies may take time, the broader robotics industry is expected to benefit as cheaper end-products drive greater usage. The cost of humanoid robots is still very prohibitive, but it is expected to come down in the future [1].

References:
[1] https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-08-01/robots-emerge-as-new-driver-for-china-s-tech-rally-with-75-jump
[2] https://finance.yahoo.com/news/nvidia-nvda-boosts-h20-chip-153028104.html