NewTimeSpace Star | Backed by SoftBank and IDG: Can Youibot Become Hong Kong's First Mobile Manipulation Robot IPO?

Youibot submitted a renewed prospectus to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on March 31, 2026. By 2024 revenue, the company ranks first in the global industrial mobile manipulation robot market, with shareholders including SoftBank Ventures Asia and IDG Capital. The following is a fact-based review of its business, financials and listing progress based on the prospectus and public data.

I. Second Filing: Aiming to Become the First Mobile Manipulation Robot IPO

On March 31, 2026, Hefei Youibot Robotics Co., Ltd. filed a renewed listing application with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, with CICC acting as the sole sponsor. The company, founded in 2017 by a team of Xi'an Jiaotong University Ph.D. graduates, is attempting to list on the HKEX main board as the "first mobile manipulation robot stock."

The company positions itself as an "industrial embodied AI technology company," but its core business focuses on mobile manipulation robots—industrial robots equipped with both autonomous mobility and manipulator capabilities. According to the prospectus, if the listing succeeds, Youibot will become the first HKEX-listed company with "mobile manipulation robot" as its core label. The company plans to list under Chapter 18C of the HKEX Main Board Listing Rules, a channel designed for pre-revenue specialist technology companies.

II. Global Market Share Leader, Semiconductor Industry Front-Runner

By 2024 revenue, Youibot ranked first in both the global and Chinese industrial mobile manipulation robot markets, with market shares of 6.1% and 12.0%, respectively. In the broader Chinese mobile manipulation robot solutions market, it ranked first with a 7.1% share.

At the vertical industry level, Youibot ranked first in revenue in China's semiconductor industry and second in the energy and chemical sector. Its solutions have been deployed by over 400 enterprises across semiconductors, energy and chemicals, lithium batteries, 3C, and other manufacturing and utility industries.

The company's business is divided into two main segments: industrial logistics solutions and inspection and maintenance solutions. In 2025, industrial logistics solutions generated approximately RMB 202 million, accounting for 59.4% of total revenue; inspection and maintenance solutions contributed RMB 138 million, or 40.6%.

III. Rapid Revenue Growth Amid Persistent Losses

According to the prospectus, Youibot's revenue grew from RMB 108 million in 2023 to RMB 255 million in 2024, and further to RMB 340 million in 2025, representing a compound annual growth rate of approximately 80.3%. Gross margin improved from 11.2% in 2022 to 38.1% in the first half of 2025, driven by economies of scale and a higher contribution from high-value-added semiconductor applications.

However, the company continues to post net losses. Losses for the years 2023, 2024 and 2025 were RMB 260 million, RMB 200 million and RMB 384 million, respectively, with the 2025 loss expanding by approximately 48% year-on-year. On a non-IFRS basis, adjusted net losses were RMB 131 million, RMB 81.19 million and RMB 106 million.

The company attributed the losses to concentrated investments in product innovation, technology development, scaled production and customer acquisition during its growth phase. As of December 31, 2025, the company had accumulated a certain level of net losses. R&D expenses, selling and distribution expenses, and administrative expenses are the primary cost items.

IV. R&D Investment and Shareholder Structure: SoftBank and IDG Among Backers

In 2025, the company's R&D expenses were RMB 83.02 million, with 141 R&D personnel accounting for 33.7% of total employees. Youibot holds 217 granted patents (including 30 invention patents) and 67 software copyrights, with another 356 patents (including 139 invention patents) pending.

On the production front, Youibot operates three manufacturing bases in Hefei, Huzhou and Shenzhen. In 2025, total production capacity was 1,900 units, output was 1,368 units, and capacity utilization was 72.0%. Customer repurchase rates in 2024 stood at 83% in the semiconductor sector, 92% in the lithium battery sector, and 83% overall in the 3C and other manufacturing industries.

To date, Youibot has completed nine funding rounds, with a pre-IPO valuation of approximately RMB 2.08 billion. Investors include SoftBank Ventures Asia, IDG Capital, SIG Asia, BlueRun Ventures and ZhenFund. In terms of shareholding structure, the single largest shareholder group comprises founder, CEO and Chairman Zhang Zhaohui; founder Mei Xuesong; founder and CTO Bian Xu; and employee stock ownership platform Xi'an Youai, together holding approximately 30.24%.

V. Competitive Landscape and Listing Outlook

Hong Kong's robotics sector has seen multiple niche "first stocks": UBTECH listed as the "humanoid robot first stock" in late 2023, Dobot became the "collaborative robot first stock" in late 2024, and Geek+ listed as the "global AMR warehouse robotics first stock" in July 2025. Currently, no company has listed under the "mobile manipulation robot" label.

Another industrial robotics company, Micro-i Manufacturing, filed for a Hong Kong listing in April 2026, positioning itself as the "industrial embodied intelligent robot first stock." Although both companies operate in the industrial robotics sector, their technical approaches and product forms differ: Youibot focuses on mobile manipulation robots, while Micro-i emphasizes an all-in-one embodied intelligent solution.

Whether Youibot can successfully list and gain market recognition depends on the HKEX's assessment of its business model, market position and future profitability outlook. Given that it has filed a renewed application under Chapter 18C and counts SoftBank and IDG among its backers, the company's listing prospects carry a certain degree of certainty. However, when the company will achieve breakeven and its post-listing valuation remain to be tested by the market.

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