On November 4, RoboSense unveiled a fully automated digital LiDAR production line at its Honghualing base in Nanshan, Shenzhen, with an annual capacity of 500,000 units per line.
The line utilizes over 100 automated devices covering more than 70 processes, achieving an overall automation rate of 99%. On average, one digital LiDAR unit rolls off the line every 8 seconds. Crucially, this is just one line; RoboSense’s MARS Intelligent Manufacturing Base has a planned annual capacity of 4 million units.
Originally founded on LiDAR technology, robotics is becoming an increasingly significant part of the company's business.
In Q12026, LiDAR sales in the robotics sector reached 185,500 units, representing a year-on-year increase of over 14 times and accounting for a share of total sales that exceeded the automotive ADAS business for the first time. Cumulative sales in the robotics sector for the first three quarters totaled 427,800 units. Meanwhile, the company completed a divestiture, further consolidating its focus on core components for LiDAR and robotics, including spatial cameras, tactile sensors, and robotic joints—key incremental components required for embodied robots. In essence, it is embedding its manufacturing capabilities into the robotics supply chain.
"Going Live" Is More Significant Than "Launching"
LiDAR serves as the "eyes" of robots. By scaling single-line capacity to 500,000 units and total planned capacity to 4 million, RoboSense reflects a pragmatic judgment: Demand for LiDAR from the robotics sector has shifted from "sample procurement" to "mass installation." Without sufficient capacity, pricing and delivery are untenable. The 4-million-unit plan is not an arbitrary figure but a bet on the pace of robot OEM volume ramp-up.
In fact, RoboSense is not acting alone; throughout 2026, the entire robotics manufacturing sector is focused on "implementation."
Lens Technology’s Kunshan robot assembly base began preparations in late August, achieved its first product rollout in late September, and currently produces 100 units per day. Next month, it aims to secure monthly capacities exceeding 10,000 units for two series destined for clients.
LINGYI iTECH’s Beijing embodied intelligence super factory has been put into large-scale operation, with a 2026 capacity target of 10,000 sets and a long-term plan for 500,000 sets by 2030.
Figure AI’s BotQ factory has accelerated its production rhythm from one unit per day to one unit per hour. At this rate, full-capacity output would exceed 8,000 units annually.
Tesla’s Optimus production line in Fremont has rolled out its first batch of mass-produced standard robots. However, Elon Musk acknowledged that the target of 20,000 units per week still requires another year or longer, with tens of thousands of details on the production line yet to be refined.
Capacity Plans Are Set, But the Real Ramp-Up Has Just Begun
In H1 2026, domestic humanoid robot OEM production exceeded 40,000 units, with the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) projecting annual production to surpass 100,000 units. While figures are rising, they remain merely a starting point by manufacturing standards. RoboSense’s 4-million-unit LiDAR capacity, Lens Technology’s monthly 10,000-unit output, and LINGYI iTECH’s long-term 500,000-unit plan are all prepared for significantly larger volumes ahead.
The true test lies not in whether production lines can be built, but in whether orders can sustain them once operational. Capacity is infrastructure; mass production is a different challenge.
This article is compiled based on public information, for reference only, and does not constitute investment advice.