Chinese start-up X Square Robot has filed confidentially for an initial public offering (IPO) in Hong Kong, according to two sources familiar with the matter, joining a growing wave of domestic robot makers flocking to capital markets, despite new US trade restrictions.The Shenzhen-based firm has tapped Huatai Securities and Morgan Stanley as sponsors for the prospective float, one of the sources said.Besides X Square, AgiBot and Galbot have also filed confidentially for Hong Kong IPOs, the second person said. The South China Morning Post reported last month that AgiBot had hired Citic Securities, China International Capital Corporation (CICC) and Morgan Stanley as joint sponsors.X Square declined to comment and the other companies and securities firms did not respond to requests for comment. The Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (HKEX) did not respond either.The flurry of listing attempts comes as Hong Kong’s IPO market hit a five-year high in terms of both total funds raised and the number of listings in the first six months of 2026, during which the IPOs raised HK$210 billion (US$26.8 billion). This was up 92 per cent, while the number of new listings almost doubled to 87 from a year earlier, according to PwC Hong Kong.An XR robot places flowers into vases during a demonstration following X Square Robot’s introduction of the model, which can perform household tasks, in Beijing on April 21. Photo: APAn expanding list of Chinese robotic makers is pursuing an IPO this year, spearheaded by Unitree Robotics, which began price consultations on Wednesday for a flotation on Shanghai’s Star Market. The Hangzhou-based company plans to sell 40.45 million shares, or 10 per cent of its enlarged share capital.