[DigitalToday reporter Jinju Hong (홍진주)] China produced 67 new unicorn companies in the first half of 2026, showing a rapid expansion in its tech startup ecosystem centered on artificial intelligence and robotics.
Cryptopolitan, a blockchain news outlet, reported on July 7 local time that 67 unicorns were newly created in China in the first half of this year. That was the second-highest tally ever for a half-year period, averaging about one new unicorn every three days.
AI and robotics were at the center of the surge. Unlike the second half of 2021, when electric vehicles, biopharmaceuticals and consumer internet companies grew evenly, more than half of new unicorns in the first half of this year, at more than 53 percent, were concentrated in AI and robotics. It shows China’s startup ecosystem is being reshaped around specific advanced industries.
The most closely watched company was Hangzhou-based AI startup DeepSeek. In its first external fundraising, DeepSeek was valued at about 400 billion yuan, becoming China’s fourth most valuable unicorn after ByteDance, Ant Group and Shein.
DeepSeek drew global market attention with its R1 AI model released last year. The company said the model’s training cost was only about $294,000, and it claimed it developed a competitive AI model at much lower cost than U.S. rivals. Low development costs combined with a high valuation are seen as further stoking investor enthusiasm for Chinese AI startups.
Most new unicorns were still at an early growth stage. About 78 percent were concentrated in the $1 billion to $2 billion valuation range, and 32 of the 67 companies were founded within the past three years. In particular, 14 companies were startups founded in 2023, showing that firms emerging after the generative AI boom gained valuation rapidly.
China’s presence also stood out in global markets. PitchBook data showed 90 unicorns were newly created worldwide in the first half of this year, and Chinese companies accounted for 67 of them, or more than 74 percent. The rise in global unicorns in the first half was also assessed as being driven by the AI boom.
AI adoption is also spreading rapidly on the industrial front. In China, more than 30 percent of large industrial companies are already using AI in their work, according to the tally. The humanoid robot market is also accelerating. Morgan Stanley raised its forecast for China’s humanoid robot shipments this year to 50,000 units from 28,000, and it assessed expansion potential positively.
Robot companies are also pursuing initial public offerings. The China Securities Regulatory Commission recently approved Unitree Robotics’ listing on Shanghai’s STAR Market. The company plans to raise about 4.2 billion yuan and is valued at about 42 billion yuan. Unitree is among the rare Chinese robot companies to post a profit, achieving 1.7 billion yuan in revenue and 591 million yuan in adjusted profit last year.
AGIBOT, China’s largest humanoid maker by shipments, is also considering a Hong Kong listing in the second half of this year. The market expects its valuation at about 40 billion to 50 billion Hong Kong dollars.
That is spreading China’s AI and robot investment boom from private startups into public markets. As AI and robotics become a core axis of growth for Chinese technology companies, forecasts say China’s influence will expand further in future global technology competition.