On October 15th, Beijing time, shares of A-share listed company Sanhua Intelligent Controls (002050.SZ) experienced a rapid surge. By the afternoon, the stock had sealed the board with a remarkable 10.01% increase.

The catalyst for this surge was market rumors suggesting that Tesla's humanoid robot, Optimus, had placed a substantial order for linear actuators worth US$685 million (approximately RMB 5 billion) with Sanhua Intelligent Controls.

According to a report by 21 Finance, when staff from the securities department of Sanhua Intelligent Controls were approached to verify the news, they responded:

“We have taken note of the rumors and are conducting an urgent internal verification. If the news turns out to be false, we will promptly refute it through official channels. Currently, our collaboration with Tesla is progressing smoothly, but specific details cannot be disclosed due to confidentiality agreements.”

Before the company had a chance to refute the rumors, investors bravely jumped in, directly driving the stock price to its upper limit!

If this order proves to be genuine, it would be a significant positive development for Sanhua Intelligent Controls. It could be seen as a confirmation that Sanhua's linear actuators are set to once again become a crucial core supplier in the highly competitive field of humanoid robots.

Estimates indicate that linear actuators constitute 36% of the value of core components in humanoid robots, with a 31% share in Tesla's humanoid robots specifically, while rotary actuators make up 17.9%.

Once the RMB 5 billion order is confirmed, it would essentially cement Sanhua Intelligent Controls' position as a core supplier in the humanoid robot sector.

For Sanhua Intelligent Controls, a RMB 5 billion order represents a substantial business opportunity.

According to Sanhua Intelligent Controls' financial reports, its total operating revenue was RMB 27.95 billion in 2024 and RMB 16.26 billion in the first half of 2025.

If this RMB 5 billion order commences execution in the first quarter of 2026, it is expected to have a positive impact on Sanhua Intelligent Controls' financial performance. More importantly, it unlocks significant valuation potential for Sanhua as a core supplier in the humanoid robot sector.

Industry insiders believe that the linear actuators included in this order could be sufficient to produce 180,000 Tesla Optimus robots.

During Tesla's Q2 2025 earnings call, Elon Musk announced that the Optimus 3 prototype could make its debut by the end of the year, with mass production slated for the following year. He expressed confidence that annual production of 1 million units could be achieved within less than five years.

If Sanhua Intelligent Controls generates RMB 5 billion in revenue from supplying components for 180,000 units, imagine the potential revenue with an annual production of 1 million units. From this perspective, once Optimus achieves large-scale mass production and Sanhua Intelligent Controls solidifies its role as a supplier, its valuation could significantly surpass its current market cap!

However, there are also inherent risks involved.

According to a report by the U.S. tech media outlet The Information in early October, Tesla is encountering challenges in mass-producing its humanoid robots, primarily due to severe technical issues with the dexterity of the robots' hands. The engineering team has been unable to resolve design problems with the robot's hands and forearms, struggling to create a mechanical hand with human-like dexterity. This issue was identified in the summer of 2024, and despite several rounds of attempts, the engineering team has not yet made a breakthrough.

As a result, Tesla has revised its annual production target for Optimus downward from 5,000 units to 2,000 units and has temporarily halted production due to warehouses being filled with Optimus robots lacking dexterous hands.

Elon Musk has also acknowledged in podcast interviews that achieving fine hand manipulation is the most challenging aspect of the entire project.

Interestingly, a few days prior to The Information's report, Tesla released a video showcasing Optimus learning Chinese martial arts from a master.

Subsequently, humanoid robot startup Figure released a video of its third-generation robot, Figure 03.

In the video, Figure 03's movements while performing household chores and serving as a receptionist appeared remarkably natural, almost indistinguishable from those of a real human.

Unsurprisingly, both Optimus's Chinese martial arts video and Figure 03's video faced skepticism. Optimus was accused of being remotely controlled, while Figure 03 was labeled as a fake.

The vision for humanoid robots is indeed captivating. Humanity's fascination with creating humanoid robots may stem from a desire to prove that humans, too, are incredibly sophisticated machines, possibly crafted by higher-dimensional beings (or 'farmers').

Elon Musk has also repeatedly expressed his belief that the probability of humans living in a real world, as opposed to a simulated one, is less than one in a billion.