(Image source: provided by interviewee)

TMTPOST — CASBOT, a fast-rising Chinese humanoid robotics company, has completed an Angel+ financing round worth nearly 100 million yuan (about $13.8 million), capitalizing on a national frenzy over bipedal robots priced on par with a home down payment.

The round was led by smartphone component giant Lens Technology, joined by Tianjin Jiayi and returning investors SDIC Venture Capital and Henan Assets. Proceeds will be used to accelerate mass production, advance R&D, and push into new industrial and commercial markets, according to CASBOT's announcement on Wednesday.

Founded in 2023, CASBOT (Beijing Zhongke Huiling Robotics Technology Co., Ltd.) develops bipedal, wheeled, and dexterous hand robots targeting manufacturing, mining, logistics, and service sectors. The company expects to deliver more than 300 units across product lines this year.

"Our mass production always includes the word 'delivery.' Without delivery, talking about mass production blindly is meaningless," said co-founder and COO Zhang Miao.

CASBOT made headlines earlier this month after its second-generation humanoid robot, CASBOT 02, launched on JD.com with a price tag of 328,800 yuan ($45,300). It features a 275 TOPS AI chip, bionic design, agile motion, and advanced interaction capabilities. Compared to its predecessor, the 02 reduces manufacturing costs and cuts production lead time.

The company's COO emphasized CASBOT's edge in hardware architecture, embodied intelligence based on VLA (Vision-Language-Action) models, and integration of supply chain resources to boost production efficiency.

"The goal is to build scalable robot product lines with strong scenario adaptability while driving down costs," Zhang told AsianFin.

CASBOT has deployed units to clients including Lens Technology, Lenovo, CITIC Heavy Industries, Zhaojin Group, and China National Gold Group. Zhang noted that industrial use cases such as consumer electronics production, mining patrols, and underground operations remain the top priority.

"Industrial scenarios offer clear ROI expectations, relatively structured environments, and scalable deployment potential. That’s why we prioritize them over consumer-facing home service robots," Zhang said.

The company plans small-batch deliveries of around 100 units each for its three robot types in the second half of 2025.

China is racing ahead in humanoid robotics. Bloomberg estimates that over half the world's humanoid robots in 2024 will be made in China. Domestic sales of full-body humanoid robots are expected to hit 7,300 units in 2025, with the market approaching 2.4 billion yuan.

UBS forecasts that 2 million humanoid robots will be working globally by 2035, and Citibank estimates the sector could be worth $7 trillion by 2050.

Zhang said CASBOT will continue leveraging China's supply chain advantages and focus on data-driven iterative upgrades in scenario-based deployments. He sees robots as a productivity leap, not a replacement for all human jobs.

"Robots won't replace emotional interaction, creativity, or strategic thinking. Our mission is to free humans from repetitive, dangerous, low-value tasks."

He added that household humanoid robots may take at least five more years to become viable due to regulatory, safety, and supply chain constraints.

As global capital pours into humanoid robotics, CASBOT's latest funding round positions it to be one of China's contenders in the AI-embodied future.