How China built a humanoid robot for the price of an iPhone

Chinese startup Noetix Robotics has developed Bumi, a humanoid robot priced at approximately US$1,380—comparable to a high-end smartphone like the iPhone 17 Pro Max—marking a significant departure from the typically exorbitant costs of humanoid robots, which often exceed tens of thousands of dollars. Following a successful RMB 300 million (US$41 million) pre-B funding round, Noetix quickly sold over 100 units within the first hour and 500 within two days on JD.com, highlighting strong market demand. Bumi stands 94 centimeters tall and is designed primarily as a social companion and educational platform rather than for industrial or full household automation purposes. Noetix achieved this affordability through three key strategies: vertical integration by designing critical hardware components like control boards and motor drivers in-house to reduce costs and optimize performance; structural redesign using lightweight composite materials with minimal metal reinforcement to reduce weight to 12 kilograms, enabling smaller motors and batteries; and sourcing nearly all