Silicon Valley investors are increasingly travelling to China to tour robot factories and assess the technology being developed by potential competitors to their US portfolio companies.
The trips are not primarily about finding Chinese investments. Instead, venture capitalists want a closer look at China’s manufacturing capabilities, supply chains, robotics deployments and data-collection infrastructure.
Silicon Valley VCs Are Paying $10,000 to Tour China’s Robot Factories
Some organised tours cost around $10,000 per person and include translators, luxury hotels, factory visits and dinners with technology executives. Private groups of investors are also arranging their own visits to cities including Shanghai, Shenzhen and Beijing.
The growing interest reflects concerns that China has developed a significant advantage in parts of the robotics industry. Research cited by Business Insider found that Chinese companies Unitree and AgiBot accounted for 71% of global humanoid robot shipments last year, while China also has a strong position among suppliers of key humanoid-robot components.
Investors returning from these trips say seeing China’s capabilities firsthand has challenged some long-held assumptions about the country’s technology sector.
However, they have also found limitations. One investor said some Chinese robots demonstrated impressive physical abilities but struggled with simple tasks such as picking up a bottle and throwing it away.
For US investors, the trips are increasingly influencing how they assess the long-term competitiveness and China-related risks of American robotics startups.
