While exchange traded funds (ETFs) dedicated to robotics have been on the increase in the United States since 2013, investors can now become more granular in their stock picking with the first U.S.-listed pure-play ETF in humanoid robotics - once confined to science fiction - coming to market last year.
In June 2025, Roundhill Humanoid Robotics ETF (Cboe: HUMN) became the first U.S.-listed humanoid ETF that’s actively managed and includes major holdings like Tesla and NVIDIA.
Within days of Roundhill’s HUMN ETF coming to market, KraneShares launched its equal-weighted Humanoid Robotics ETF, the KraneShares Global Humanoid Robotics and Embodied Intelligence Index ETF (Nasdaq: KOID).
With KOID, investors get exposure to the humanoid robotics ecosystem, including the “brain” of the humanoid (semiconductors & technology), the “body” (actuation systems, mechanical systems, sensing & perception, critical materials), and humanoid “integrators” (the companies actually manufacturing humanoids).
Global X launches Humanoid Robotics ETF
Since these two ETFs first came to market in the U.S. last year, Australian investors have also been invited to play in the Humanoid Robotics sandpit, with ETF issuer Global X launching its Humanoid Robotics ETF (ASX: HMND) on the ASX on 30 March.
Hailed as the first of its kind in the ETF market, HMND is understood to offer investors dedicated exposure to companies at the forefront of the global humanoid robotics ecosystem across South Korea and China.
With a market cap just shy of A$1 million (NAV: $46.84), HMND gives investors access to developers of humanoid and service robotics, industrial and autonomous robotics, assistive and wearable robotics, and the technology facilitating innovations such as AI and advanced robotic components.
By tracking an Australian dollar-denominated version of the Solactive Global Humanoid Robotics Index, HMND is designed to capture the performance of 30 companies operating across the global humanoid robotics value chain.
“At the same time, wage inflation and the need to maintain productivity are increasing the economic incentive to automate. In many industries, the cost of labour is no longer declining in real terms, making the relative economics of automation increasingly attractive over time,” Global X said in an explainer last week.
Global X ETFs Australia CEO Alex Zaika told the market that the launch of HMND provides Australian investors with a unique opportunity to invest in innovation as humanoid robotics evolves from concept to commercial reality.
“We know that investors are increasingly seeking exposure to the structural trends transforming global industries, and humanoid robotics are poised to play a significant role in that evolution,” Zaika said.
“HMND allows Australians to participate in that trajectory while supporting companies at the forefront of technological innovation.”
Meanwhile, what's driving the momentum behind humanoid robotics is a powerful convergence of current market dynamics, including rapidly evolving AI capability, persistent labour shortages, ageing populations and rising productivity pressure across the global economy.
Together, these trends are unlocking what Zaika sees as a multi‑year investment cycle.
By taking a full value‑chain approach, he believes HMND offers investors diversified exposure across AI, components and enabling technologies that are critical to scaling humanoid robotics systems globally, while avoiding reliance on any single early‑stage outcome.
The ETF’s current largest portfolio exposure is to China at 36.6%, followed by South Korea at 30%, and top 10 holdings include Yujin Robot, Neuromeka and Teradyne, along with Palladyne AI Corp, Nvidia and Tesla.
Two other ETF options
For investors looking for other ASX ETFs in the robotics sector, two options to consider include:
Robo Global Robotics And Automation ETF (ASX: ROBO) – seeks to invest in companies that potentially stand to benefit from increased adoption and utilisation of robotics and artificial intelligence.
Betashares Global Robotics and Artificial Intelligence ETF (ASX: RBTZ) – targets global companies involved in the production or use of robotics and robotics-focused AI products and services.
Equities with a robotics focus
But if you’d rather be a stock-picker than hitch your fortunes to ETFs, there’s no shortage of listed companies with a major focus on robotics for you to choose from.
Given that GlobalData forecasts the robotics sector growing from US$76 billion in 2023 to US$218 billion by 2030 - a 14% compound annual growth rate – some of these stocks could be worth taking a closer look at: here are just eight to consider.
