China accelerates development of humanoid robots: Unitree shares soar 600% on the stock market despite Washington's ban citing national security concerns

The Chinese pioneer in humanoid robots Unitree soared by more than 600% on its IPO in Shanghai, at a time when Washington has already banned these machines from entering the United States for national security reasons.

On Monday, the company unveiled the Superman humanoid, which, according to Unitree, can jump up to 6.5 feet and run at 41.5 feet per second. It had already impressed the public at the Spring Festival gala with robots dressed in kung fu outfits.

An explosive debut in Shanghai

Shares of the Hangzhou-based company rose as much as 629%, to 1,100 yuan (about $160), compared with the offering price of 150.80 yuan (about $22). The stock closed at 845 yuan (about $125), up 460%.

According to AFP, Stephen Innes of Quintex Intel described it as "the market setting off a flare over China's next speculative frontier." "The message is quite clear: physical AI has become the new object of desire."

Trump's ban and the race with Washington

The stock price surge coincides with a tougher U.S. stance. In June, Washington added Unitree to a list of companies accused of supporting the Chinese military. In July, the Trump administration added humanoid and quadruped robots, including those from China, to a list of products whose import into the United States is prohibited on national security grounds.

Despite this, according to industry sources, Unitree's products are used not only at Chinese universities but also by U.S. giants such as Nvidia, Google and Amazon.

The company is listed on the STAR Market in Shanghai, often referred to as the Chinese Nasdaq. The communist regime has declared robotics a strategic industry: as of last year, more than 140 local companies had launched over 330 humanoid models.