Victoria Bazir
If you were wondering who's winning the humanoid robot race, the numbers make it pretty clear. Fresh shipment data for 2025 shows Chinese companies commanding the global market, with domestic manufacturers collectively responsible for the overwhelming majority of units sold worldwide.
China's Top Robotics Firms Pull Far Ahead
Jesse Cohen was among the first to flag the trend - and the numbers back him up. Unitree topped the global rankings with roughly 5,500 units shipped, with Agibot close behind at 5,168. Other Chinese players added meaningful volume: UBTECH moved 1,000 units, Leju Robotics 500, Engine AI 400, and Fourier Intelligence 300.
A broader "Others" category contributed another 1,350 units. On the U.S. side, Figure AI, Agility Robotics, and Tesla each came in at around 150 units - highlighting just how wide the production gap has grown.
The Humanoid Robot Revolution is here and China is winning the race.
The data isn't just about raw numbers. It reflects genuine industrial momentum. Chinese firms are moving from prototype to factory floor at a pace that's hard to match. UBTECH deploys Walker S2 humanoid robots at SANY Heavy Industry's wind turbine production line, which is a real-world example of how these machines are already embedded in high-volume manufacturing environments.
Global Adoption Is Growing, but Unevenly
Outside China, adoption is happening - just at a slower pace. In Europe, humanoid welding robots are coming to Fincantieri shipyards by 2026, signaling that heavy industry is beginning to take the technology seriously. In North America, Toyota Canada brings in Agility Robotics Digit to handle factory work - a targeted pilot, but a notable one from a major automaker.
Still, these deployments look modest next to China's scale. With nearly 90% of 2025 shipments concentrated among Chinese manufacturers, the country isn't just participating in the humanoid robotics market - it's defining it. How quickly Western firms can close the gap may be one of the more consequential technology storylines of the next few years.
Victoria Bazir
