Reference News Network, January 22 report: The website of the UK's Financial Times published an article titled "Why So Many Chinese Robot IPOs?" on January 20. The author is Li Qi, a researcher at the Policy Institute of the Asia Society. The following is a compilation of the article:

This year, at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, more than half of the humanoid robot exhibitors came from China. This is no coincidence. China's position in the field of robotics reflects the industrial situation formed over decades.

China's manufacturing system is based on clustered, highly coordinated supply chains, which means it can achieve rapid development in embodied intelligence. Mass production and vertical integration allow Chinese technology companies to shorten R&D cycles and significantly reduce costs.

These advantages have already given rise to China's electric vehicle industry. The industry was initially questioned for quality and technology, but now it has taken the global lead.

Engineering and technical talents further solidify this foundation. In areas such as automation, control systems, and advanced manufacturing, China has cultivated a large and increasingly diverse professional workforce.

However, outside the exhibition halls in Las Vegas, the mood of Chinese technology suppliers is clearly more restrained. In closed-door exchange activities, they have no illusions about the challenges they face.

Chinese entrepreneurs generally point out that U.S. restrictions on hardware have led to challenges for China in cutting-edge research and advanced materials. Engineering and technical talents can only play limited roles under existing resources, and access to deep, liquid capital markets remains restricted. Most robot startups are still in the money-burning stage and have not yet achieved profitability.

These situations help explain why robot companies are eager to go public. In the past year, dozens of Chinese robot and artificial intelligence companies applied for initial public offerings (IPOs) in Hong Kong, many of which were oversubscribed. The enthusiasm of investors for Zhejiang Ji and Wan An Robotics is real, but the urgency of financing is also real. Embodied intelligence is a capital-intensive long-term business area. Although the listing restrictions for hard tech companies have been relaxed, the waiting time is still long, and the listing time cannot be determined.

The result is that startup investors are increasingly inclined to choose development paths with commercial viability.

Although there are differences in technological pathways, many Chinese robot companies are turning to similar application areas: industrial automation, warehouse logistics, hazardous operations, and household services. Even so, large-scale deployment in the short term is still unrealistic. The dancing robots that went viral online are still far from commercial use.

People are gradually realizing that R&D approaches focused on short-term goals are not conducive to achieving large-scale breakthroughs.

There is currently a saying that China once exchanged market access for technology, but this logic is now reversing.

This model is not limited to the field of robotics. Other technology companies, such as Zhipu and Xi Yu Technology, are examples of this trend through their IPOs in Hong Kong.

The robots at the consumer electronics show vividly demonstrate China's strength to the world. However, despite strong support for emerging technologies, China remains highly sensitive to the outflow of technology and talent. To understand the future development of China's technology sector, it is necessary to go beyond the simple "who is the winner" narrative framework. The more important question is how geopolitical constraints are changing the incentives, business models, and directions of innovation.

For both the United States and China, the greatest risk to development is not the technology itself - both countries have substantial strengths in this area. The real risk lies in the fact that political narratives may weaken the common basis for promoting innovation between the two countries, and these foundations are essential conditions for making innovation sustainable, understandable, and reliable. (Translated by Hu Guanghe)

Original: toutiao.com/article/7598005209004032558/

Statement: The article represents the views of the author.