Chinese tech champions from Tencent to Unitree boost European ties amid US trade war

At VivaTech, the Chinese ambassador to France says Beijing is ready to collaborate with Paris to enhance scientific and technological exchanges

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A Huawei sign seen at the VivaTech fair in Paris. Photo: AFP

Published: 9:32pm, 12 Jun 2025Updated: 11:45am, 16 Jun 2025

Chinese companies, including Huawei Technologies and Unitree Robotics, are grabbing plenty of attention at one of Europe’s largest technology shows in Paris this week, as Beijing commits to deepen technological ties with France amid an intensifying rivalry with the US.

In a speech at the China Pavilion of the VivaTech trade show on Thursday, Chinese ambassador to France Deng Li said the country would continue to promote “open cooperation” and “peaceful development” in global technology, adding that Beijing was ready to collaborate with Paris to enhance scientific and technological exchanges.

The China Pavilion, organised by the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, showcased innovative technologies, including a humanoid and a robot dog from Hangzhou-based start-up Unitree, which has become a symbol of the nation’s advances in robotics.

Europe is currently Unitree’s third-largest market, behind China and the US, according to a company staff member. Unitree has sold thousands of its G1 humanoid robot and hundreds of its B2 industrial robot dog globally, he said.

China’s ambassador to France, Deng Li (centre, in suit), tours the China Pavilion. Photo: Xinmei Shen

Unitree aimed to deploy its robots, which could be programmed by customers for difficult tasks, in projects that involve “boring, dangerous, dirty work”, said Zhang Min, Unitree’s European market director.

Huawei, another featured company at the China Pavilion, has a reduced presence at VivaTech this year compared with last year, when it operated its own booth.