China’s Humanoid Robot Makers Compete for Visibility Before Viability
Three companies just secured Spring Festival Gala partnerships worth millions. The robots still can’t match human workers. The real product being sold is the IPO story.
On January 26, Unitree Robotics became the third Chinese humanoid robot company to announce Spring Festival Gala partnership for 2026. Galaxy General and Magic Atom had already secured their own sponsorship categories.
Three companies in four days. The timing tells the story.
Last week, Unitree issued an unusual public statementdisputing industry shipment data. Research firm Omdia had projected in early January that global 2025 humanoid robot shipments would reach roughly 13,000 units, with China’s Agibot leading at 5,168 units (39% market share), followed by Unitree at 4,200 units (32%), and UBTech at 1,000 units.
Unitree insisted its actual 2025 shipments exceeded 5,500 units. The company wasn’t disputing methodology. It was claiming the top spot.
This dispute reveals something essential about the current moment. Chinese industry data shows over 140 companies in China have announced humanoid platforms, releasing more than 330 different models. Yet the entire global market projected to ship only 13,000 units in 2025.
The arithmetic exposes the overcrowding. Most companies fighting for visibility have shipped almost nothing.
This raises the central question. Why fight over percentage points in a 13,000-unit market? Why spend millions on national television advertising when your sales pages carry explicit warnings about product “limitations”?
The answer becomes clear when you examine what companies are actually selling. Television placement and shipment data disputes serve capital markets, not customer acquisition.
The Gala Stampede
For readers unfamiliar with Chinese media, the Spring Festival Gala operates at Super Bowl scale with Olympic ceremony prestige. The 2025 broadcast reached 16.8 billion viewer impressions with 78.88% audience share. Unlike the Super Bowl, which exists primarily as entertainment, the Gala carries institutional weight. Every minute of airtime signals government endorsement.
Late December reports described two leading companies competing for prime Gala placement, with bids allegedly reaching 100 million RMB ($14 million). One company denied the specific figures. The denial matters less than the narrative’s credibility. Industry observers believed the story because it matched observed corporate behavior.
Consider the economics. Based on disclosed contract values and shipment volumes, leading companies likely generated several hundred million RMB in 2025 revenue. Spending $14 million on a single advertising placement would represent a substantial portion of annual revenue. That math only works if you’re optimizing for outcomes beyond immediate sales.
The 2025 Gala demonstrated what television exposure could deliver. Unitree deployed 16 robots executing synchronized folk dance routines in traditional winter costumes. The performance went viral. Rental companies reported earning over 100,000 RMB ($14,000) monthly leasing robots for corporate events. More valuable was the institutional signal. Local government procurement officers and state enterprise executives watched the same broadcast as everyone else.
One company’s leadership framed Gala participation as “showcasing China’s robot technology progress and the integration of technology with culture.” This is corporate diplomacy language. Translation: We want officials to see our brand on state television.
Another company’s announcement emphasized its recent $300 million funding round at $3 billion valuation. Connecting fundraising success to Gala participation isn’t consumer marketing. This is capital market signaling.
What looks like advertising spend actually functions as investor relations.