Alibaba Group Holding has co-led a $140 million (1 billion yuan) Series A+ funding round in Shenzhen-based robotics startup X Square Robot, signaling its deepening focus on artificial intelligence and robotics. The round was co-led by Alibaba Cloud and CAS Investment Management Co., with additional participation from HSG, Meituan, and Legend Star.
This investment comes as Alibaba accelerates its $53 billion commitment to building AI infrastructure over the next three years, reinforcing its ambition to become a leader in AI-driven innovation. The move also aligns with Beijing’s national strategy to prioritize robotics as a key growth driver, which is attracting both state-backed and private capital to the sector.
Unlike several of its rivals, X Square Robot is taking a software-first approach. Rather than focusing primarily on hardware development, the company is investing in advanced robotics algorithms. CEO Wang Qian emphasized that this software-led strategy serves as X Square’s core differentiator.
Recently, the company unveiled Wall-OSS, an open-source foundation model designed to compete with OpenAI-backed Physical Intelligence, which is working to embed machine intelligence across a variety of devices and platforms.
X Square currently offers two wheeled robots and a robotic arm, diverging from the humanoid prototypes that many Chinese robotics companies are actively showcasing. By focusing on practical and commercially viable solutions, the startup is positioning itself to serve industries that need scalable automation solutions rather than experimental robotics.
Industry analysts remain bullish on the robotics sector. Citigroup projects the global robotics market could grow to $7 trillion by 2050, creating massive opportunities for companies like X Square and investors like Alibaba to capture early market share.
By backing X Square Robot, Alibaba is strengthening its foothold in robotics and AI while signaling confidence in software-centric approaches to automation. This collaboration is expected to accelerate the development of intelligent robotics solutions that can be deployed at scale across industries worldwide.
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