Author: Think AI, Aaron

On the evening of June 30, the emotional companionship robot, which was pre-sold for almost a month, was officially launched at a press conference hosted by Ubtech founder Zhou Jian.

At the Shenzhen venue, the bionic robot danced with a real person, creating a beautiful scene with realistic expressions.

This robot differs from those seen during the Spring Festival Gala; it is made to realistic human proportions, facial features, and appearance, and integrates advanced AI models, allowing it to exhibit over 30 complex micro-expressions such as blinking, raising eyebrows, and smiling.

The robot is designed for women at 168cm and men at 183cm, customized according to general aesthetic preferences, while the pre-sale platform noted "for adults only," leaving plenty of room for imagination.

The pricing is also exciting; the U1 series of bionic humanoid robots includes three products:

U1Lite is a lightweight half-body version, priced at 119,800 yuan; the high-end full-body version U1Pro is priced at 169,800 yuan; the high-dynamic full-body female version U1Ultra is priced at 880,000 yuan, while the male version is priced at 990,000 yuan.

At the end of the press conference, the founder announced that orders exceeded 13,300 units.

At first glance, this isn't very many, but it's worth noting that Ubtech's total sales of humanoid robots for the entire year of 2025 was only 1,079 units, making this pre-sale exceed ten-fold.

Additionally, few companies in the industry have annual shipments of over 10,000 units, and the leading domestic company Yushu sold only 5,500 humanoid robots.

This time, Ubtech turned around on the consumer end overnight, raising its profile; can it truly deliver on this momentum?

While people are paying attention to robots doing household chores, why is this robot entering the emotional companionship and even adult markets? What market demand lies behind it?

Changing Lanes to Overtake

Ubtech was founded in Shenzhen in 2012 and is one of the earliest companies to establish a foothold in humanoid robotics in China.

In 2014, it launched its first small robot, Alpha, and in 2016, 540 units of Alpha appeared at the Spring Festival Gala.

In 2018, it released the first-generation Walker humanoid robot, and in December 2023, it went public on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange as "the first stock of humanoid robots."

It seems glamorous, but the road has not been easy in recent years.

In 2023, Ubtech generated revenue of 1.047 billion yuan, with a net loss exceeding 1.2 billion yuan.

In 2024, only 3 full-sized humanoid robots were sold; Ubtech's revenue mainly relied on consumer-grade hardware like cat litter machines and robotic vacuums throughout 2024.

A turning point occurred in 2025.

That year, Ubtech's sales of full-sized intelligent humanoid robots surged to 1,079 units, bringing in 821 million yuan in revenue, a year-on-year increase of 2203.7%, and total revenue exceeded 2 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 53.3%.

Although there was still a net loss of 703 million yuan, this was a significant reduction year-on-year.

This time, with the U1 series surpassing 13,000 units, it was equivalent to 12 times the annual sales for 2025, achieving a spectacular leap from enterprise to consumer with a single product.

However, the market does not consist of only Ubtech.

Yushu Technology sold 5,500 humanoid robots in 2025, more than five times that of Ubtech.

However, their approaches are completely different:

Over 70% of Yushu's humanoid robots are sold to universities and research institutions, with an average price of around 160,000 yuan; Ubtech's full-sized humanoid robots have an average price of about 760,000 yuan, with nearly 90% deployed in industrial scenarios.

This time, Ubtech has chosen a completely different path, focusing on emotional companionship instead of competing with Yushu in performance.

The Explosive Growth of the Single Economy

Ubtech's bet this time is on the huge market of the single economy.

In China, the proportion of single-person households rose from 2.52% in 2000 to 25.4% in 2020;

in 2024, marriage registrations hit a 47-year low, and by 2025, China's single population is expected to exceed 240 million, with the market size for the single economy projected to surpass 8 trillion yuan.

More importantly, consumer logic is undergoing a significant change.

The single economy is shifting from "function-oriented" to "emotional value-oriented";

eating alone, living alone, traveling alone — behind these "solo economies" is a strong desire for companionship.

Guotai Junan estimates that the potential demand for companionship robots among young people is around 500 billion yuan. Huafu Securities predicts that the global market for adult robots will exceed 30 billion US dollars by 2025.

Ubtech has precisely tapped into this pain point, stating that "super bionic robots are a new form extending the companionship economy to the hardware end."

From physical pets to smart devices, the essence is to meet the emotional support needs.

Moreover, super bionic robots have the unique advantages of being "always online, emotionally stable, and not creating awkwardness." They do not get tired, do not have emotional outbursts, and do not betray.

Challenges Remain for Implementation

Although the pre-sale results are good, the deposit is only 3,000 yuan and is refundable before July 15.

Orders with full payment for Ubtech robots may be significantly reduced, and nearly half of the orders are for the lite version, priced at over 100,000 yuan, leaving the final revenue uncertain.

Moreover, mass production remains the core challenge and a major issue facing the industry currently.

Ubtech founder and CEO Zhou Jian bluntly stated that the difficulty of mass production for bionic robots is "rare in the history of human manufacturing."

The robot's eyebrows and every eyelash initially require manual implantation. The head comprises 2,000 to 3,000 components.

Some wax figure factories can produce only a few hundred units a year, while Ubtech's target this year is to exceed 10,000 units. The leap from 1,079 units to 10,000 units presents noticeable challenges in scaling production.

The delivery starting on September 16 will serve as the first litmus test for its quality. Can the promise of 13,000 units be fulfilled on time? We will wait and see.

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