Darren GoonawardanaChief Executive Officer & Co-Founder, Collectiv · Chief Executive Officer & Co-Founder at Collectiv

Inside China's Humanoid Robot Factory: From Zero to 10,000 Units in Three Years

3 Jun 2026 · 2 min

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1:48

In this introductory episode of the six‑part series “Cyborg CEO in China,” the narrator challenges the long‑standing Western narrative that China is merely a copier and low‑cost labor hub. He recounts discovering that, between 2023 and 2026, a previously unknown company, AGI Bot, grew to become the world’s largest manufacturer of humanoid robots, now preparing for a $6 billion IPO. During a six‑day visit to AGI Bot’s Shanghai headquarters and a conversation with one of its robots, Luca, he observes that Chinese firms now originate breakthrough products at a speed and scale that Western executives struggle to comprehend. The key insight is that Chinese companies spend a decade competing internally among dozens of rivals in a market of 1.4 billion people, so when they finally look abroad they are already dominant and come to “collect” rather than to compete. The speaker urges leaders to refresh their data, mental models, and strategies regarding China, warning that relying on information older than two years leads to decisions based on a country that has fundamentally changed. The episode serves as a teaser for the series, promising deeper looks into the innovations reshaping China’s AI and robotics landscape.

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Every leader I know has a mental model of China, and I just found out mine was out of date. In 2023, a company called AGI Bot did not exist. By 2026, they have become the largest humanoid robot manufacturer on planet Earth, and they're going public this year at a $6 billion valuation. I visited their Shanghai HQ. I talked to one of the robots, Luca, and I left with one thought: we are not watching China catch up. We are watching China move on. For 20 years, the Western story on China was simple: good at copying, bad at creating, cheap labor, borrowed ideas, an imitator, not an originator. I went to China to test that story. What I saw across 6 days in Shanghai and Hangzhou wasn't imitation, it was origination at a speed and scale most Western executives cannot comprehend. Here's the frame that changes everything: By the time a Chinese company shows up in your market, the fight is already over. They've spent a decade battling inside a market of 1.4 billion people, competing against 30, 40, 50 other companies doing exactly the same thing. When they look abroad, they don't come to compete, they come to collect. So here's the question for you as a leader: when did you last update your data, thinking, and strategy when it comes to China? Because if your last data point is more than 2 years old, you're making moves on a country that simply no longer exists. Cyborg CEO in China is a 6-episode series on everything I saw in China that has changed how I think about the future. In episode 1, I go inside the largest humanoid robot manufacturer in the world, and I even have a conversation with one of them. If you want to lead with AI, do not miss it.