Unitree Robotics Faces Backlash in China Over Humanoid Robot Collaboration with NVIDIA

(Central News Agency, Taipei, June 6) NVIDIA unveiled the Isaac GR00T reference humanoid robot in Taipei on June 1, using China's Unitree Robotics H2 Plus humanoid robot as its base. Unitree became NVIDIA's first humanoid robot partner. When the news reached China, it sparked a wave of criticism and opposition, with accusations that it would lead to the leakage of Chinese technology and data, posing a national security risk.

NVIDIA once again topped Chinese social media trends, but the focus was not on CEO Jensen Huang, but on China's benchmark humanoid robot company, Unitree Robotics. The topic "Unitree's collaboration with NVIDIA criticized" sparked heated debate among netizens.

According to NVIDIA, Jensen Huang unveiled the NVIDIA Isaac GR00T reference humanoid robot at GTC Taipei on June 1. This is the first open reference design for humanoid robots based on the NVIDIA Jetson Thor and the NVIDIA Isaac GR00T open development platform.

The NVIDIA Isaac GR00T reference humanoid robot integrates Unitree Robotics' H2 Plus humanoid robot with the Sharpa Wave five-finger tactile robotic hand, onboard computing powered by the NVIDIA Jetson Thor, and Isaac GR00T software and workflows into a unified reference design.

Jensen Huang stated that the NVIDIA Isaac GR00T reference humanoid robot provides researchers with a single open platform to help them achieve breakthrough discoveries in the field of general physical intelligence.

On the same day, Unitree Robotics applied for an Initial Public Offering (IPO) and formally passed the review of the Shanghai Stock Exchange's listing committee. It took only 73 days from the acceptance of the IPO application to the passing of the listing review. The company plans to raise 4.202 billion RMB (approximately NT$19.6 billion).

According to Chinese media outlet National Business Daily, Unitree Robotics' Marketing Director Huang Jiawei stated on June 2 that the product will be officially launched in the second half of the year. Its core feature is the integration of NVIDIA's high-performance computing platform, aimed at creating a more powerful intelligent brain for humanoid robots, with the most significant improvement being in computing performance.

Huang Jiawei emphasized that Unitree Robotics looks forward to the actual application of relevant data in the iteration of future computing platforms, thereby making the intelligent brain of humanoid robots even smarter. "Based on NVIDIA's computing platform, we hope to promote the progress of the entire humanoid robot industry."

Social media posts indicate that Unitree has become NVIDIA's first humanoid robot partner. However, this move, seen by the market as a normal "strong-strong collaboration," has drawn continuous criticism in China over the past few days. Some netizens described Unitree's move as "acknowledging the enemy as father" and "selling its soul to the United States." Some "patriotic" netizens accused Unitree of eating the country's resources while embracing NVIDIA.

Many opponents argue that under the US technology blockade, Chinese state-owned and private enterprises are refusing to use NVIDIA chips to avoid future restrictions. Unitree, on the contrary, is "deeply binding" itself to NVIDIA, potentially handing over core humanoid robot technology to the United States. Many also criticized Unitree for not using Huawei chips, calling it "unpatriotic."

Xiang Ligang, a well-known Chinese technology industry observer, posted on June 4, mocking Unitree founder Wang Xingxing as being "too young." He stated that in the midst of trade, technology, and tariff wars, US technology is blockading China and sanctioning many Chinese companies. Collaborations like that between Unitree and NVIDIA carry significant uncertainty and could even lead to technology loss and security risks.

As Unitree faced a wave of criticism, Hu Xijin, former editor-in-chief of the Global Times, came to its defense on the same day.

He said that if Unitree completely relies on NVIDIA to build the intelligent brain for humanoid robots in the future, there is indeed a long-term risk of being "choked." However, this risk is only one aspect of the matter. He personally supports Unitree in exploring collaboration with NVIDIA while maintaining vigilance and adhering to the basic principle of independent innovation, as long as it is legal and compliant.

Unitree Robotics is hailed as "China's pride." In 2025, its humanoid robot shipments ranked first in the world, and its global market share for quadruped robots exceeds 60%.

In February of this year, the US Department of Defense added Unitree Robotics to its "Chinese Military Companies List," and the US Congress is considering further restrictive legislation against Unitree. (Editor: Yang Shengru / Chen Yanjun) 1150606