Shenhai Zhiren, a deep-sea robot company supported by BYD, raises 500 million yuan and unveils the SEAgent 1.0 model

NOUSBOT, a company specializing in high-precision transmission components such as planetary roller screws and linear actuators, has completed an A+ funding round worth nearly 100 million yuan. The round was led by Shunwei Capital, followed by Wangqian Capital, which is affiliated with CATL. The capital raised will be used to expand the production capacity for miniature screws, improve products, and enter foreign markets.

This is the fourth round for the company; previous investors included the venture fund SAIC Motor, Pudong Science and Technology Innovation, and Lenovo Capital.

NOUSBOT was founded in July 2023 and evolved from a family business with over thirty years of experience in screw manufacturing. The company conducts forward development and full-cycle in-house production of planetary roller screws and linear actuators. Its R&D center is located in Shenzhen, while its production bases are in Shanghai and Suzhou.

Founder Xu Yang holds a master's degree in mechanical engineering from Tongji University and previously worked at Valeo, gaining experience in automotive transmission and precision manufacturing.

The company produces what is called the world's smallest planetary roller screw: it has a diameter of 1.5 millimeters, a 5.5-millimeter diameter nut, C5 accuracy, a positioning repeatability of plus-minus 0.01 millimeters, and a load capacity of 50 Newtons. Integrated into a micro-linear actuator the size of a USB drive, it provides a thrust of 15 kilograms. The next-generation actuator is equipped with force feedback with an oscillation accuracy of 1%, positional feedback, and temperature feedback with motor degradation alerts, transmitting multidimensional data to the robot's brain for a closed loop of fine manipulation.

According to Xu Yang, the market has undergone significant changes in just eight months. If most decisions before the last closing in December 2025 were based on the Tesla approach, now the number of companies involved in dexterous hands has doubled, directions are diversifying, and demand for transmission extends to wrists, forearms, and even necks and faces, with neck mobility increasing from one or two degrees to four to six.

Xu argues that screw mechanisms will surpass linear connections: unlike rotary joints, which struggle to combine high force and small size and suffer from motor overheating due to stopping, integrated linear connections based on screws use natural self-locking, allowing motors to operate intermittently, thereby reducing heat generation, saving energy, and extending service life.

The main limitation is production capacity. The factory in Suzhou operates around the clock at full capacity, producing 3 million screws per year, which is still insufficient to meet demand. With a forecast of one million humanoid robots in the future, the annual demand for screws could reach 30 million, while global effective capacity is extremely inadequate. The company aims to achieve a production of 10 million screws per year by the end of the year. Its product matrix covers thrust from 3 to 1000 kilograms and targets surgical robots, lithium-ion battery coatings, semiconductor optical modules, and low-altitude economy. In the automotive industry, its high-force density microactuator has secured eight successful project wins with Yanfeng Seating and recognition from SAIC.

Xu noted that the unit price has already reached hundreds of yuan, and the company's strategy is based on a power matrix platform, not on defending the market with a single product.

Following its Initial Public Offering (IPO) on August 10th via online subscription, Unitree's stock price was set at 150.80 yuan. This implies a market capitalization of 60.99 billion yuan and a target fundraising amount of 6.10 billion yuan, which is nearly 1.9 billion yuan above the initial plan. This established price benchmark now serves as a standard for all Chinese companies producing humanoid robots aiming to go public.

There are three tiers in the queue of such companies. The first tier includes companies with public documentation: Unitree, participating in the subscription; DeepRobotics, responding to the first round request; Leju, undergoing public review; and DOBOT, having received approval from the ChiNext listing committee. The second tier is the confidential Hong Kong track: AgiBot confirmed preparation for a Hong Kong listing, while Zhongqing reportedly submitted a confidential application. The third tier is in the planning stage, comprising X Square Robot, Zhipingfang, and CrossWise Intelligence, who are exploring options or consulting advisors.

Unitree demonstrated revenue of 1.699 billion yuan in 2025, with GAAP net profit of 591 million yuan and operating cash flow of approximately 670 million yuan. Sales of 5,215 humanoid robots generated 868 million yuan in revenue, marking the first year where humanoid sales surpassed quadruped model sales. This picture reflects the maturity of hardware profits, supplemented by a premium for future prospects in humanoids and embodied AI.

DeepRobotics and DOBOT possess clearer fundamental metrics. DeepRobotics generated 322 million yuan in embodied robotics revenue in 2025, utilizing quadruped and wheeled robots for power system inspection, fire and emergency response, and industrial control. However, only four humanoids were released between 2024 and 2025. DOBOT recorded revenue of 493 million yuan in 2025, with 395 million yuan coming from collaborative robots, which constitute 80 percent of the core business. Revenue from humanoids and multi-legged robots amounted to 20.04 million yuan, accounting for 4.1 percent of the total.

The market will value these companies based on their current, mature business, with only a relatively small addition in the form of a humanoid premium. Companies X Square Robot, Zhipingfang, and CrossWise Intelligence emphasize end-to-end models, data cycles, and generalization across different embodiments. Private markets may value them based on team and roadmap, whereas the public market will demand a stricter conversion funnel: from model to delivery, from delivery to recurring revenue, and from recurring revenue to sustainable margin. The question is whether quarterly revenue can maintain the valuation narrative after the first revaluation. Unitree's market capitalization of 60.99 billion yuan has become a crucial benchmark, and the next two reporting cycles will determine whether the other companies in line can meet this level, exceed it, or fall below it.