Unitree Robotics has secured approval from China’s securities regulator for a Shanghai initial public offering that is poised to set a valuation benchmark for China’s sizzling embodied AI sector.

The nod from the China Securities Regulatory Commission came about a month after the Hangzhou-based company cleared a review by the Shanghai Stock Exchange’s listing committee.

Unitree is now finalising its underwriting plan, pricing and share subscriptions for a potential debut as early as late July.

The robot maker plans to raise about 4.2 billion yuan (US$618.4 million) by selling at least 40.4 million shares – a minimum 10 per cent stake that implies an initial valuation of around 42 billion yuan.

The proceeds will fund robot model development, robot-body research, new products and manufacturing capacity, according to its prospectus.