Robot's Leap, IPO's Soar
Unitree Unveils Superman Robot With Record Jumps and Speed as IPO Raises Billions
Key Points
IPO demand and valuation: Unitree's Shanghai STAR Market listing drew record demand with retail buyers oversubscribed 8,288 times; the company priced at 150.8 yuan per share and raised about 6.1 billion yuan, valuing Unitree near $9 billion. The deal priced around 36 times expected 2025 sales, versus roughly 18x for UBTech, highlighting a rich market appetite for robotics debuts.
Two-track product strategy and lineup details: In addition to Superman, Unitree is expanding its humanoid lineup including H1, H2, G1, R1, R1-Air, and the GD01 transformable mech, with G1 priced at 99,000 yuan to broaden adoption. The GD01 is described as the world's first mass-produced manned transformable mech, signaling a move into more capable, price-accessible robots.
Video showcase and rapid development timeline: Unitree released a 30-second demonstration video showing Superman launching vertically from a standstill and then sprinting at speed, with development from project initiation to debut in just over three months, and ongoing rapid iteration to improve motion control, stability, and energy efficiency.
Performance benchmarks vs human records and verification caveat: Unitree cites Usain Bolt's sprint as a benchmark and notes no independent verification of Superman's speed; Bolt's 12.42 m/s mark is used as a reference in kinematic analysis.
Earlier progress on speed benchmarks: Unitree's H1 robot achieved about 10 m/s in running speed in April, a world-record figure cited by Global Times, illustrating a trajectory of pushing humanoid speed beyond human limits.
Chinese robotics firm Unitree has unveiled a humanoid robot called Superman that can sprint at 12.66 meters per second and leap 2 meters from a standing position, according to MarketScreener. That speed edges past Usain Bolt's world record of 12.42 m/s — though Unitree has not provided independent verification of the figure.
The reveal comes as Unitree closes a blockbuster IPO on Shanghai's STAR Market, raising 6.1 billion yuan ($905 million) with retail demand oversubscribed 8,288 times, per Yahoo Finance. The company is now valued at close to $9 billion.
Superman Built From Scratch in Just Over Three Months
Unitree says it took a little over three months to go from project start to debut. That is a remarkably short timeline for a robot with these claimed specs. Superman has 0.85-meter legs and was shown in a 30-second video launching vertically from a standstill before breaking into a full sprint, according to MarketScreener.
The company says rapid iteration will continue. Engineers are focused on improving motion control, stability, and energy efficiency. Unitree calls Superman a push to test the outer limits of high-dynamic movement in humanoid machines.
Speed Claims Beat Bolt — But No Outside Verification Yet
Unitree uses Bolt's 12.42 m/s sprint record as its benchmark. Superman's claimed top speed of 12.66 m/s would beat that by 0.24 m/s. Startup Fortune noted the comparison, though the company itself has flagged that no independent body has confirmed the numbers.
This is not the first time Unitree has pushed speed records. Its earlier H1 robot hit about 10 m/s in April, which was reported as a world record for humanoid robots at the time. Superman now raises that bar by more than 2.5 m/s.
IPO Priced at 36x Sales as Investors Pile In
Unitree priced its shares at 150.8 yuan each on the Shanghai STAR Market. The deal valued the company at roughly $9 billion — about 36 times expected 2025 sales. That is double the roughly 18x multiple paid for rival UBTech, showing how hot appetite for robotics IPOs has become, according to Yahoo Finance.
Retail investors drove record demand. The offering was oversubscribed 8,288 times, meaning buyers put in orders for far more shares than were available. Unitree raised $905 million in total from the listing.
Broad Robot Lineup Targets Both Power and Affordability
Superman sits at the high-performance end of a growing product family. Unitree also makes the H1, H2, G1, R1, R1-Air, and GD01 robots. The G1 is priced at 99,000 yuan to make humanoid robots more accessible, per MarketScreener. The GD01 is described as the world's first mass-produced manned transformable mech.
The two-track strategy — push performance at the top, cut prices at the bottom — mirrors what Chinese EV makers did to dominate global car markets. Unitree is betting the same playbook can work for robots.
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