Boston Dynamics IPO Pushed Beyond 2027 Over Atlas Rollout & Losses

Hyundai Motor Group has confirmed that its robotics subsidiary Boston Dynamics will not pursue an initial public offering in 2027, according to a senior company official cited by Reuters. The official said the unit's flagship Atlas humanoid still has no large-scale commercial deployment and that the business continues to lose money.

A filing from Hyundai Glovis, which owns an 11.25 percent stake in Boston Dynamics, revealed a loss of 528.4 billion won in 2025. Cumulative losses from 2021 through 2025 total roughly 1.7 trillion won, or about $1.4 billion. Hyundai has declined to name a listing date or target valuation.

Kim Joon-sung, an analyst at Meritz Securities, stated that Hyundai needs to build a real track record and sharpen the robots' capabilities before selling them at scale. He said he expects the IPO debut in 2029 or 2030.

Analysts including Kim Hyun-su, a principal investment manager at IBK Asset Management in Seoul, are skeptical that Hyundai can reach its production target of building annual factory capacity for 30,000 Atlas humanoids a year by 2028. The company shared that goal during an investor relations session hosted by JPMorgan Chase, where it also said it plans to deploy more than 25,000 Atlas robots across Hyundai Motor and Kia manufacturing facilities.

Boston Dynamics currently earns most of its revenue from Spot, its four-legged robot, and Stretch, a box-unloading machine, rather than from the Atlas humanoid. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement plans to spend at least a million dollars on Boston Dynamics robots to improve officer safety.

The delay follows a broader pullback in humanoid robotics momentum. Chinese maker Unitree Robotics saw its share price drop below 500 yuan, erasing more than 240 billion yuan in paper value from its debut peak. China's Securities Regulatory Commission has informally told humanoid firms to demonstrate recurring revenue, reduced losses, or genuine technological innovation before attempting to list.

In July, Hyundai Executive Chair Chung Euisun moved to raise his personal stake to 25 percent with an additional 120 billion won, as part of a plan to buy out SoftBank's remaining holding and give Hyundai Motor Group full ownership before a debut IPO. That buyout is valued at roughly 500 billion won, about $371 million.