Chinese automakers are following Tesla’s bet that robots are the next big profit machine
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- Xpeng's robotics unit raised over $900 million at a $6.3 billion post-money valuation in what the company called the largest single-round private financing in China's "embodied AI" industry, led by IDG Capital with Gaorong Ventures, Tencent, and Alibaba participating.
- Xpeng founder He Xiaopeng and co-president Brian Gu personally invested about $100 million in the round, according to the WSJ — backing Iron, a humanoid robot built for commercial deployment.
- Chery's robotics unit AiMOGA is reportedly preparing for an IPO this month, while BYD unveiled a humanoid robot called Xiao Di, with Changan, GAC, Li Auto, SAIC, and Seres also developing humanoids.
- Dunne Insights CEO Michael Dunne told TechCrunch Chinese automakers "have all the hardware to get the job done" but questioned whether they can catch Tesla on AI, noting He Xiaopeng sees "razor-thin profit in cars on the near horizon."
- Hyundai plans to bring Boston Dynamics' Atlas robot to its Georgia factory this year and deploy it for parts sequencing by 2028 via a new Robot Metaplant Application Center, partnering with Google DeepMind.
- Mobileye acquired Mentee Robotics earlier this year for $900 million, and Rivian has spun out Mind Robotics.
Why it matters: When Xpeng's founders personally commit $100 million to Iron, it reframes the humanoid robot race as a margin-escape play for automakers — Dunne says He Xiaopeng sees "razor-thin profit in cars on the near horizon," meaning robotics isn't optional R&D but the next profit pool.
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