Insider Brief
• Schaeffler has entered a strategic partnership with Leju Robotics Technology Co., Ltd. to accelerate development and industrial deployment of humanoid robots, marking the German manufacturer’s first collaboration with a Chinese humanoid robotics company.
• The companies plan to focus on industrial use cases including factory inspection, equipment operation support, logistics and human–robot collaboration, with Schaeffler aiming to integrate a mid-four-digit number of humanoid robots into its own production operations by 2035.
• Schaeffler will contribute key robotics components and manufacturing expertise across actuators, sensors, motion control and energy systems, while Leju Robotics provides humanoid robot R&D and industrial-scale production capabilities as both firms seek to expand within the rapidly developing global humanoid robotics ecosystem.
Schaeffler is expanding its push into humanoid robotics through a new partnership with Leju Robotics Technology Co., Ltd..
According to Schaeffler, the collaboration is its first with a Chinese humanoid robotics developer and adds to existing partnerships with robotics manufacturers in Europe and the United States. The companies plan to focus on industrial applications such as factory inspection, equipment operation support, logistics and human–robot collaboration.
Schaeffler AG CEO Klaus Rosenfeld said one of the new areas the German motion tech company is focusing on is humanoid robotcis.
“With Leju Robotics, we are gaining a strong, innovative partner in one of the most dynamic growth markets for humanoids,” Rosenfeld said. “With our eight product families and decades of manufacturing excellence and innovative strength, we are excellently positioned here. The cooperation is proof that we have established ourselves as a reliable and strong partner in the global humanoid ecosystem.”
Schaeffler said it expects humanoid robots to become part of its own manufacturing operations over time, with plans to integrate a mid-four-digit number of humanoids across production facilities by 2035.
“Schaeffler has in-depth expertise in high-end equipment manufacturing and industrial automation, while Leju Robotics offers insights in research and development and transfer to industrial-scale manufacturing of humanoid robots,” Zhendong Ke, Vice President of Leju Robotics, said. “This cooperation will combine the respective strengths of both parties and focus on industrial application scenarios, data collection, model iteration as well as technological advancement of the next generation.”
According to the company, the partnership reflects Schaeffler’s broader strategy to position itself as a key supplier to the emerging humanoid robotics industry. The company provides a range of components used in robotic systems, including:
- Rolling bearings and precision gears
- Screw drives and motion-control systems
- Electric motors and sensors
- Thermal management and battery management technologies
Schaeffler said its capabilities across these systems allow it to support core robotics functions such as actuation, sensing, motion control and energy management. The company also pointed to its experience across multiple manufacturing processes, including metalworking and additive manufacturing, as a foundation for scaling humanoid robotics hardware.
Leju Robotics is expected to contribute expertise in humanoid robot design, research and development, and industrial-scale production. The companies said the collaboration will focus on real-world industrial deployments, data collection and model refinement to support the next generation of humanoid systems.
“Humanoid robotics is one of Schaeffler’s strategic business areas and has enormous market potential, especially in China,” noted Dr. Yilin Zhang, Regional CEO Greater China. “The signing of this strategic cooperation agreement is an important step following the establishment of an independent humanoid company on-site.”
Schaeffler has identified humanoid robotics as a strategic growth area, particularly in China, where industrial adoption and ecosystem development are accelerating. The company said the partnership is intended to strengthen its position within the global humanoid robotics supply chain while expanding collaboration with manufacturers across the sector.
In January, UK startup Humanoid and Schaeffler entered a multi-year technology partnership to deploy hundreds of humanoid robots across Schaeffler’s production facilities over the next five years. Initial beta deployments were planned for 2026–2027 to validate integration, safety, IT security and operational performance, with later phases expanding to Robot-as-a-Service and CapEx deployment models alongside joint actuator development and AI training data collaboration.
In November, Schaeffler entered a technology partnership with Neura Robotics to co-develop compact, high-torque actuators for humanoid robots, targeting joint systems such as shoulders, elbows and wrists. The agreement included plans for Schaeffler to integrate a mid-four-digit number of Neura humanoid robots into its global production network by 2035, while also using real factory production data to train AI models supporting Neura’s Neuraverse cognitive robotics platform.
Image credit: Schaeffler
