Unitree’s founder says that the humanoid robot market will take off once robots can handle 80% of tasks given to them via voice instructions in unfamiliar surroundings. He believes that will take two to 10 years. Robots already perform well in test conditions, but their execution collapses once objects or surroundings shift even slightly. Unitree plans to spend nearly half of the proceeds from its recent IPO to develop embodied AI, which it believes is the key to closing the gap between humanoid robots and human workers.

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Technology

AI

Unitree Sees Robots Reaching ‘Mass Market’ Within Decade

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Wang Xingxing at the World Robot Conference in Beijing on Aug. 20.Photographer: Qilai Shen/Bloomberg

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By Bloomberg News

August 20, 2026 at 2:49 AM UTC

Updated on

August 20, 2026 at 5:00 AM UTC

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Humanoid robots will reach “mass market” popularity within a decade, after manufacturers solve problems that hold back their current usefulness, the founder of China’s Unitree Robotics said.

The market will take off once robots can handle 80% of tasks given to them via voice instructions in unfamiliar surroundings, Wang Xingxing said in a speech at the World Robot Conference in Beijing on Thursday. That will take two to 10 years, he said.