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European humanoid supply chain

Schaeffler has disclosed a €350 million order book, Bosch has contracted to build HMND 01, and SECO is developing compute modules for NEURA. AgiBot and Minth have started production in Serbia. German equipment makers GROB, EMAG and NETZSCH supply winding, precision-machining and powder-processing systems.

Robot production & industrialisation

Robot assembly

AgiBot and Minth begin robot production in Serbia

AgiBot and Minth launched humanoid robot production at Minth’s Šabac factory in August 2026. The first phase represents €20 million of investment. A planned €200 million robotics park in Inđija forms the next phase; the completed project targets annual capacity of up to 20,000 humanoids and robot dogs combined.

Sources

Government investment-agency announcement. The 20,000-unit figure is planned annual capacity across humanoids and robot dogs.

Development Agency of Serbia · Šabac production launch · 2026-08-29
Government investment-agency announcement

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Contract manufacturing

Bosch contracts to manufacture Humanoid’s HMND 01

UK-based Humanoid appointed Bosch as contract manufacturing partner for HMND 01 robots for the European market. The agreement covers production and engineering support for manufacturability, reliability, serviceability and cost, following a joint factory proof of concept in March 2026.

Sources

Manufacturing agreement; annual output, plant allocation and production-start date are not specified.

Humanoid · Bosch manufacturing agreement · 2026-05-21
Company announcement or operating disclosure

Company & events →

Actuators & factory rollout

Hexagon links AEON rollout to Schaeffler actuator supply

AEON entered Schaeffler’s German training and validation facility in August 2026, ahead of a planned rollout of at least 1,000 robots across Schaeffler operations. Schaeffler will also supply AEON’s actuators. In June, Hexagon reported AEON performing production tasks at BMW Leipzig while training for further applications.

Sources

August training milestone and planned fleet; June BMW production-task trials.

Hexagon · Schaeffler training and actuator supply · 2026-08-19
Company operating announcement

Hexagon · BMW Leipzig milestone · 2026-06-15
Company operating announcement

Company & events →

Automotive industrialisation

Renault takes Calvin from development to factory use

Renault and Wandercraft developed Calvin through Paris laboratory work and a recreated Douai wheel workshop at Flins before moving to the factory. Renault’s June roadmap targets around ten robots working by end-2026 and 350 across French and Spanish factories by end-2027.

Sources

Customer-reported industrial development and deployment targets.

Renault Group · Calvin industrial programme · 2026-06-26
Customer development and deployment update

Company & events →

Industrialisation

NEURA and Bosch develop industrial production systems

NEURA and Robert Bosch Robotics agreed to develop humanoid hardware, software and industrial data collection. Bosch is supporting industrialisation; the partnership also explores component supply, final assembly and motor production. This is a separate development programme from Bosch’s HMND 01 manufacturing contract.

Sources

Potential component supply, assembly and motor production are areas of exploration.

NEURA · Bosch technology and development partnership · 2026-01-14
Company announcement or operating disclosure

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Development & production

NEURA separates Swiss development from German production

NEURA placed 4NE1 humanoid development at its Zurich site while retaining robot production in Metzingen, Germany. Its announced Zurich footprint covers 1,800 square metres, with 800 occupied at opening and a further 1,000 planned for 2026.

Sources

Facility roles announced in December 2025; the additional 2026 space was planned.

NEURA · Zurich development site · 2025-12-09
Company announcement or operating disclosure

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Companies by role

Robot programmes

Motion & joints

Manufacturing & compute

Magnet materials

Component orders & manufacturing

Component orders

Schaeffler humanoid order book

Schaeffler reported a €350 million humanoid order book at June 2026 across three OEMs and seven products. Management identified XPENG and two unnamed US customers, with production starts in 2026 or Q1 2027. Its calculation reduced customer volume assumptions by at least 50%.

Sources

Company order-book calculation; the disclosed total excludes launches under the NEURA, Humanoid and Hexagon partnerships.

Schaeffler · Q2 earnings call, pp. 18–19 and 31–32 · 2026-08-05
Company-reported order book

Component details →

Actuator contracts

Schaeffler–Humanoid actuator agreement

UK-based Humanoid signed a five-year actuator agreement with Schaeffler covering more than 50% of joint-actuator demand for its wheeled platforms through 2031. Expected supply is in seven-digit unit volumes. The component contract accompanies a separate phased deployment of robots at Schaeffler factories.

Sources

The seven-digit quantity is expected supply over the agreement, not completed deliveries or annual capacity. The separate robot deployment agreement has its own schedule and unit count.

Humanoid · phased deployment and supply agreement · 2026-05-13
OEM-reported binding supply agreement

Component details →

Gearbox investment

Schaeffler targets formed-gearbox mass production in 2027

Schaeffler has validated formed strain-wave gearboxes for humanoids and plans mass production from 2027, starting in Germany. It says forming cuts key component-manufacturing steps from minutes to seconds, manufacturing cost by over 25% and material consumption by over 75% versus conventional machining. The process builds on more than two million formed gearboxes supplied to the automotive sector over ten years.

Sources

Schaeffler’s cost and material figures compare gearbox manufacturing processes. The company previously supplied more than two million formed gearboxes for automotive applications. Humanoid gearbox production is planned from 2027.

Schaeffler · formed strain-wave gearboxes · 2026-08-13
Manufacturer process claims and production plan

Component details →

Actuator production

Stabilus and Synapticon plan actuator production

Stabilus and Synapticon plan small-series joint-actuator production at Stabilus plants in Europe in 2027, followed by high-volume production in North America in 2028. The range runs from head and wrist joints to hips and knees. Stabilus supplies mechanics and manufacturing; Synapticon supplies drives, electronics, sensing and safety software.

Sources

Company production timetable; individual plants and annual unit capacity are unspecified.

Stabilus · Synapticon production agreement · 2026-07-29
Manufacturer production plan

Component details →

Drive-system sourcing

Generative Bionics develops European drive units

Generative Bionics and Synapticon are developing drive units combining motors, servo drives, encoders, firmware and functional safety. Final assembly, calibration and safety testing are planned within the European Economic Area, primarily Germany. The agreement also provides for EU-held safety stocks and prequalified European component alternatives.

Sources

June 2026 development agreement and intended production arrangements.

Synapticon · Generative Bionics agreement · 2026-06-16
Manufacturer development and industrialisation agreement

Component details →

Joint components

SKF commits to humanoid joint manufacturing

SKF signed an agreement with Leaderdrive to establish a Chinese venture for precision humanoid joint components, with SKF holding a 60% majority stake. The venture targets the start of operations by the end of 2026.

Sources

The planned venture targets industrial humanoids in China and selected overseas markets.

SKF · Leaderdrive venture announcement · 2026-07-02
Company-reported investment agreement

Component details →

Compute supply

SECO develops European compute modules for NEURA

SECO will design, engineer and manufacture compute modules for NEURA’s cognitive robots, including 4NE1. The modules integrate Qualcomm Dragonwing processors. The modules are to be developed and produced in Europe using a US-designed semiconductor platform.

Sources

Announced development and industrialisation agreement; module volumes and production-start date are undisclosed.

SECO · NEURA compute-module agreement · 2026-09-07
Company announcement or operating disclosure

Component details →

Magnet sourcing

Magnet restrictions disrupted motor production

maxon reported fluctuating production utilisation during China’s 2025 rare-earth-magnet export restrictions. It said the supply situation had eased by June 2026. The Swiss motor group’s disclosure covers its business across applications.

Sources

The report covers the group across applications, not frameless motors or humanoid output alone. It gives no affected-unit count or basis for assuming an ongoing shortage.

maxon · 2025 operating review · 2026-06-23
Manufacturer operating disclosure

Component details →

Production equipment

European equipment makers cover motor-stator winding, roller-screw nut machining and magnet-alloy powder preparation.

Magnet and material investment

Rare-earth permanent magnets provide the rotor field in compact joint motors. Neodymium-based magnets deliver high magnetic strength in a small volume; dysprosium or terbium additions improve resistance to demagnetisation at higher temperatures. Motor production therefore depends on separated oxides, metal and alloy conversion, and finished magnet capacity. The IEA identifies magnet manufacturing and conversion of oxides into metals as major bottlenecks in expanding supply outside China.

Sources

Magnet composition varies by grade; heavy-rare-earth-free grades are also in production.

VAC · humanoid motor materials
Magnet manufacturer technical documentation and IEA supply-chain assessment

VAC · permanent-magnet materials, March 2026
Magnet manufacturer technical documentation and IEA supply-chain assessment

IEA · Rare Earth Elements
Energy agency supply-chain assessment

Solvay expands magnet-material separation

La Rochelle, France · rare-earth oxides

Solvay began producing neodymium-praseodymium oxides for permanent magnets at La Rochelle in 2025. In July 2026 it approved a further €15–20 million for separation capacity and scheduled industrial-scale dysprosium and terbium separation for autumn 2026. An agreement with Viridis proposes Brazilian rare-earth feedstock for the French plant.

Sources

Operating NdPr oxide line; July update gives the Dy/Tb production target.

Solvay · Q2 2026 results · 2026-07-29
Company investment and production update

Solvay · 2025 annual report
Company investment and production update

Component market context

Neo expands European magnet manufacturing

Narva, Estonia · sintered NdFeB magnets

Neo reported first commercial sintered-magnet deliveries from Narva, Estonia, to a Tier 1 EV traction-motor customer in September 2026. Phase 1A has about 2,000 tonnes/year of nameplate capacity; a planned expansion to about 5,000 tonnes/year is in engineering and equipment procurement.

Sources

Neo reported discussions with robotics customers and targeted two to three commercial customer programmes by end-2026. The first programme had entered commercial delivery.

Neo Performance Materials · commercial production at Narva · 2026-09-14
Company production update and capacity plan

Component market context

Materials, integration and supply dependencies

Rare-earth imports
The EU imported 15,100 tonnes of rare-earth metals and compounds in 2025, up 17.1% from 2024. China supplied 46.8% by weight, Russia 25.9% and Malaysia 23.1%. The trade basket spans metals, intermixtures and compounds used across electronics, motors and other industries.
Sources

Rare-earth metals, intermixtures and compounds; import shares by weight.

Eurostat · EU rare-earth trade in 2025 · 2026-06-29
Government trade statistics

Oxides, alloys and magnets
La Rochelle produces separated rare-earth oxides; Narva manufactures sintered magnets. Between those stages sit conversion to metal and alloy production. Solvay is arranging feedstock from Brazil for its French plant. Narva’s first commercial programme supplies an EV traction-motor Tier 1, with robotics customers in discussion.
Sources

Distinct processing stages and customer programmes.

Solvay · Q2 2026 results · 2026-07-29
Company investment and production update

Neo Performance Materials · commercial production at Narva · 2026-09-14
Company production update and capacity plan

Customer concentration
Schaeffler’s disclosed series order book spans three OEMs, while its wider development pipeline covers 45 humanoid manufacturers and more than 50 sample orders during 2026.
Sources

OEMs and sample orders are different counts: several orders can come from one customer. Schaeffler does not allocate these figures to individual actuator, bearing, gearbox or sensor families.

Schaeffler · Q2 earnings call, pp. 18–19 · 2026-08-05
Company-reported

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