Topstar unveiled a full-size industrial bipedal humanoid called Star at its TOPS DAY 2026 open day in Dongguan. It stands 172 centimetres, weighs 72 kilograms and carries 10 kilograms on two arms, and it is aimed at material handling and sorting inside existing plants.
The design brief is the interesting part. Most humanoids in the market were built to demonstrate capability and then retrofitted to a customer’s floor. Star was dimensioned against factory layouts from the start, with 7-axis human-like arms and cross-axis wrists to replicate the posture a line worker actually uses.
Data collection as the product
Topstar says the robot captures physical scene data while it works, feeding that back to improve capability. This is the same loop the company has been describing for two years as scenario plus robot plus data plus AI: the robot earns its place on the line by doing a job, and the job produces the training signal that makes the next version better.
Star completes a form-factor ladder. Topstar already sold wheeled robots, and launched a quadruped called Xingzai in January for inspection and forest firefighting. All three point at industrial sites rather than at homes or showrooms.
Three announcements and two procurement deals
The same event carried three solution launches covering industrial embodied intelligence, humanoid precision machining, and precision injection moulding for AI server components, under a slogan about serving AI with AI. The component side moved with it. Subsidiary Efemi launched the S400, a five-axis machine tool dedicated to machining humanoid joints and shells, aimed at precision and consistency in volume production. Topstar signed a humanoid procurement agreement with Kaihang Technology, and Efemi signed a five-axis machine purchase agreement with Leiwang Technology.
The installed base is the justification. Topstar says its embodied robot workstations are commercially delivered, its AI flexible sorting workstation is running in several leading manufacturers’ plants, and its smaller Xiaotuo unit is in small-batch validation for 3C handling. Named customers include Huawei, Foxconn, Huaqin and Goertek.
The policy clock
China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission are jointly running a real-scenario training programme for humanoids and embodied AI, with a stated target that by the end of 2026 key products must complete application validation and routine deployment in a set of representative scenarios. That deadline lands in seven weeks.
It explains the pace of announcements across the sector and it explains why a machine tool subsidiary is launching a humanoid-specific five-axis machine before the humanoid has a price. Topstar has not disclosed Star’s production timing, price or first customer list.
The strategic bet is that industrial buyers will pay for a robot that fits the line they already have, rather than rebuilding the line around a robot that fits a keynote.
Editor’s note: This is an adapted translation of the original Gasgoo report. It has been trimmed and restructured for readability for an international business audience. The full original (in Chinese) is at https://www.gasgoo.com/apps/e060bad9eca91db7f01403fc7120041f/robot/news/70477379/.