The impending market debut of Unitree Robotics has generated unprecedented excitement, but a formidable new wave of "robot makers" is rapidly entering the embodied intelligence robotics arena. Nearly 20 major automakers have now joined this race, including Tesla, Byd Company Limited, Chery Group, GAC Group, Changan Automobile, XPeng Inc., Seres, and Li Auto.
Li Auto Chairman Li Xiang has stated that, from a market structure perspective, any automaker with revenues reaching the hundreds of billions to trillions of yuan will inevitably enter the embodied intelligence robotics sector. He described this as a "positive signal." Yao Maoqing, a partner at AGIBOT, noted that an industry without sufficient competition will develop slowly. He emphasized that embodied intelligence is a trillion-yuan track, but it is still in its early stages, and the entry of more powerful players will accelerate its maturation.
The entry of automakers into humanoid robot production is entering a phase of mass deployment. A recent white paper by Tencent Cloud and Frost & Sullivan suggests the sector is at a critical inflection point, moving from a "technology accumulation phase" to a "phase of explosive growth." Byd Company Limited has released a humanoid robot, with Executive Vice President Li Ke stating the goal is to place two to three robots in every dealer showroom, with commercial deployment possible within the next one to two years. XPeng Inc. is moving faster, with its next-generation IRON humanoid robot slated for a third-quarter 2026 debut, mass production by the end of 2026, and deliveries to commercial clients in China and overseas starting in 2027. XPeng Chairman He Xiaopeng believes that once mass production begins, the speed of data-driven iteration for humanoid robots will surpass that of new energy vehicles.
Moja Robot, a subsidiary of Chery Group, has been particularly rapid. It recently completed the delivery of 100 smart security robots with a 1,000-unit contract signed, and as of late July, its global cumulative deliveries exceeded 2,000 units, covering 60 countries and regions. General Manager Zhang Guibing stated that as production volumes rise, costs will rapidly decline, with the price of capable industrial robots dropping from millions of yuan to under 500,000 yuan. He added that when the price of an embodied intelligence robot approaches that of a mid-range car, a consumer market explosion will occur.
Automakers cite deep technological overlap and unique application advantages as key drivers. The core components of electric vehicles, such as motors, controllers, and reducers, are highly similar to those needed for robotics. The prevailing view is that every smart car is essentially a robot. Li Xiang predicts that competition among mid-to-high-end smart cars in the next three to five years will fundamentally be a competition of embodied intelligence. Furthermore, automakers possess distinct scaling advantages. Complex automotive factories are ideal first deployment sites for robots, while dealer showrooms provide valuable data for training and iteration, which is scarce for pure robotics companies. Yao Maoqing noted that moving robots into real-world scenarios to gather high-quality data and form a technical feedback loop is now a critical development path. The government has also launched a national initiative to drive the "work mode" for humanoid robots in representative scenarios, aiming for "10,000-unit-scale deployment capabilities."
Automakers are also replicating their sales channels for robots. Chery Group, for instance, will leverage its extensive overseas sales and service network to support Moja Robot, addressing early-stage product issues. Zhang Guibing explained that the high-tech attributes of cars and robots can complement each other, enhancing overall brand image.
The rush into this sector is driven by growing pressure on automakers' core business. Data shows auto industry profit margins fell to 3.4% in the first four months of the year, a historic low, while the Chinese new energy vehicle market enters a stock-competition phase. Embodied intelligence is seen as a vital growth engine. XPeng Inc. expects hardware and AI model revenue from robotics to be a major profit driver from 2027. Chery Group Chairman Yin Tongyue stated its "third curve" (humanoid robots, Robotaxi) is showing results, unlocking future growth. Beyond operational pressure, automakers are grappling with valuation challenges in the stock market. Many companies are actively shedding their "automaker" label to command a higher valuation. XPeng Inc. has rebranded to XPeng Group, with He Xiaopeng stating, "XPeng is a technology company, not just an auto company." Similarly, Chery Group is accelerating its transformation into a global AI tech company, seeking to be seen as a high-tech, embodied innovation company rather than a traditional automaker.
Global market forecasts for embodied intelligence robotics project growth from 94.9 billion yuan in 2025 to 408.4 billion yuan by 2030, and potentially reaching 5 trillion USD by 2050.
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