Chinese domestic manufacturing in robotics is expanding. According to the IFR’s World Robotics 2025 Report, Chinese manufacturers sold more factory robots than foreign manufacturers at home in 2024 for the first time.
The Chinese share climbed to 57% across industries, up from 47% in 2023. Chinese humanoid robots are made by companies like AgiBot and Unitree.
Unitree’s vision-language-action frameworks for its latest model, Unitree H2, are open source and available on GitHub.
US firms allege model theft
American AI firms like Anthropic have accused Chinese counterparts such as Moonshot of distilling their models. The US announced plans to investigate and potentially impose sanctions on Chinese AI firms.
The restrictions come as Washington and Beijing remain at odds over AI, Taiwan, tariffs and trade. Some analysts argue that countries deploying technology most effectively see bigger benefits than those developing it.
The robotics ban extends existing restrictions on Chinese technology providers. The move could signal further scrutiny of hardware and software from foreign manufacturers deemed to pose cybersecurity risks.
