Robots: labor is only 8% of Unitree's costs, so US protectionism can't win on price
teortaxesTex · x · 2026-11-07
teortaxesTex shares an analysis rebutting claims that automated lines will make Figure robots cheaper than Unitree. Labor is the wrong battlefield: Unitree's 2025 COGS was RMB 668m, with materials at 546m and labor only 54m—so a US factory cutting labor to zero could tolerate only 10% higher parts costs. The fight is over the 82% that is materials, and the FCC's 65% American-parts rule targets magnets, reducers, bearings and cells—exactly China's cheapest supply-chain strengths. China installs over half the world's new industrial robots yearly, exceeds Germany and Japan in robot density, and Unitree builds its own automated lines, so US inventions get copied within months. The realistic outcome mirrors drones: a viable but expensive domestic niche, not underselling DJI.
Related event: Debate Erupts Over Unitree's Factory Automation and US-China Robot Paths(3 posts)→
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