AI² Robotics, a Shenzhen-based robotics startup, is considering an initial public offering in Hong Kong as early as next year, according to people familiar with the matter who spoke on Tuesday. The company is reportedly in discussions with an adviser to prepare for the potential listing.

Founded in early 2023, the three-year-old unicorn has seen its valuation surge following a major funding round in June that nearly doubled its worth to approximately $3 billion. CEO Yandong Guo had previously indicated in September of last year that the company intended to go public within one to two years.

Funding and Restructuring

Although AI² Robotics has not formally filed for a Hong Kong listing, the company completed a joint-stock restructuring in April — a step widely regarded as a structural prerequisite for going public. Two months later, the startup raised nearly 5 billion yuan ($736 million), bringing its valuation above 20 billion yuan (more than $2.9 billion).

The company manufactures wheeled humanoid robots marketed under the name AlphaBot, integrated with a proprietary vision-language-action system called Alpha Brain. Guo has described the system as the company's "key advantage." Vision-language-action systems, which enable robots to interpret natural-language instructions and translate them into physical movements, have become a focal point of the Chinese robotics sector as companies compete to commercialize AI-powered machines for logistics, manufacturing, and service environments.

Speaking to Reuters last September, Guo said the company had already achieved unicorn status and was "looking at 10 times growth (in revenue) pretty much every year."

A Growing Trend Among Chinese Robotics Firms

AI² Robotics joins an expanding roster of Chinese robotics startups pursuing public listings in Hong Kong as manufacturers seek capital to scale operations. The wave of planned offerings reflects sustained investor interest in China's robotics industry, which has benefited from national-level policy support for advanced manufacturing and AI integration. Caixin Global reported on Tuesday that as many as 50 Chinese robotics startups are currently preparing to list in Hong Kong or on the Chinese mainland.

Notable peers include Unitree Robotics and AGIBOT. In July, Cryptopolitan reported that Unitree Robotics had received approval for its planned IPO this August, with an expected post-debut valuation exceeding 50 billion yuan ($7.4 billion). AGIBOT, described as China's largest robot vendor, intends to list in Hong Kong later this year and is targeting a valuation between HK$40 billion and HK$50 billion ($5.14 billion to $6.4 billion), according to sources familiar with the matter.

The clustering of IPO timelines across multiple firms suggests that 2025 and 2026 could be a formative period for determining which companies secure the capital and market position needed to scale production and expand commercially.