Industry Notes / Robots: Tesla and Unitree / Chapter 9 of 10 · Side-by-side
Tesla vs Unitree
Two modes: build a chain from zero vs full-stack research machines
Tesla Optimus
- Almost no mature vendors; mostly in-house
- Bottlenecks: hands, rare-earth magnets, real-task data
- Pushes ~100k sets/year readiness onto suppliers
- Endgame: scalable labor inside Tesla factories
Unitree
- >90% self-made; gross margin ~60%
- Research/education buyers; lower price sensitivity
- 2026Q1 adjusted net halved: R&D + selling buy the ticket
- Can wage price wars; buffer is vertical integration
Tesla’s hard problems are supply chain and data loops aimed at factory labor; Unitree’s are price wars and brain spend, with research/education customers holding margins today.
Source：调研正文第 10 章特斯拉 vs 宇树模式对照
Research notes, not investment advice.