Ubtech Robotics Debuts Consumer Robot Walker C1 as Humanoid Sales Explode and Stock Struggles

Ubtech Robotics launches Walker C1 consumer robot, humanoid revenue surges 25-fold to 821M yuan, targets 10,000 units in 2026, but shares fall 6.9%.

China’s Ubtech Robotics is pushing hard into the consumer market while its share price continues to slide — a disconnect that has defined the stock for months. Founder Zhou Jian unveiled the Walker C1 on May 20, a full-size service robot capable of waltzing and ballet alongside human dancers. The machine is the first product under the new UWORLD consumer brand, aimed at hotels, airports, exhibition halls and, eventually, private homes.

The Walker C1 will appear next month as the official "silicon ambassador" at the China International Supply Chain Expo, a fair drawing exhibitors from 85 countries. Ubtech is also the event’s official humanoid partner and plans to deploy a "robot volunteer matrix" across the venue.

Behind the choreography, Ubtech is building a self-sufficient supply chain. Far East Smart Energy announced on May 30 that its subsidiary Far East Electric will supply all special power and signal cables for the Walker C1. The ROBOT-ER series ranges from 14 to 34 AWG and is engineered to withstand more than one million bending cycles at 1,000 g/mm² load. In parallel, Ubtech formed a joint venture capitalised at 100 million yuan to develop in-house edge-computing chips.

The company’s industrial ambitions extend beyond China. South Korean AI firm Polaris confirmed a training collaboration at the end of May, with engineers from both sides working on the Walker S2’s operation and SDK-based secondary development. Ubtech provided the development environment and control code; Polaris is now evaluating whether the robot can handle real production tasks in Korean manufacturing plants.

Humanoid segment surges 25-fold

Ubtech’s financials reflect the shift. Revenue for fiscal 2025 jumped 53.3% to 2.001 billion yuan, propelled by the humanoid segment, which exploded from 35.6 million yuan to 821 million yuan — a 25-fold surge. Gross margin improved by nine percentage points to 37.7%, and the net loss narrowed 31.9% to 790 million yuan. Operating cash flow remained negative at 784.1 million yuan, but the order backlog stood at roughly 1.4 billion yuan.

Management targets a gross margin of 40% to 43% for 2026, when it aims to deliver 10,000 humanoid robots, up from 1,000 in 2025. That volume would still leave Ubtech in third place behind AgiBot (5,168 units) and Unitree Robotics (4,200 units), according to Omdia.

Earlier this year, three capital raises brought in 5.88 billion Hong Kong dollars. Cash reserves stood at 4.9 billion yuan at the start of 2026.

Stock under pressure despite bullish analyst calls

The shares tell a different story. In Hong Kong, the stock closed Friday at 102.20 Hong Kong dollars, down 6.9% on the day and well below all major moving averages. The 52-week range spans 73.50 to 161.00 Hong Kong dollars, leaving the current price 32.7% below the high. In Europe, the stock trades at 12.52 euros — a 4.89% daily gain, but a 6.13% weekly drop. The 52-week high of 16.95 euros is 26% away, and 30-day annualised volatility sits at 57.81%.

Short sellers have taken notice: short selling volume reached 55.1 million Hong Kong dollars, with a short ratio of 7.2%. Total trading volume exceeded 630 million Hong Kong dollars on nearly 15 million shares.

Every one of the twelve analysts covering Ubtech rates it a buy. The consensus price target is 158.63 Hong Kong dollars, or roughly 18.50 euros — more than 50% above Friday’s close. The board appears to agree: the annual general meeting on May 7 approved a buyback programme for up to 10% of the company’s H-shares.

Macroeconomics cloud the outlook

China’s official manufacturing PMI slipped to 50.0 in May from 50.3 in April, landing exactly on the expansion threshold. The new orders sub-index dipped to 49.9 — a contraction signal that could dampen demand for industrial automation. The non-manufacturing PMI edged up to 50.1.

Yet sector-wide capital flows remain robust. Since the start of 2026, more than 30 billion yuan have poured into over 200 funding rounds for embodied AI projects in China — an average of 330 million yuan per day, according to Gasgoo.

Forbes China named Ubtech to its "Top 50 Chinese AI Tech Companies" list, citing the company’s depth in technology, commercialisation and global expansion. The recognition shifts the narrative from pure humanoid hardware toward embodied AI — machines that operate in unstructured environments such as factories and warehouses.

Ubtech now needs customers, not components. The China International Supply Chain Expo later this month will provide a global platform to showcase the Walker C1 and, perhaps, close the gap between operational momentum and a bruised share price.