Goldman Sachs reiterates Buy on Hesai: strengthened supply-chain position in Nvidia's humanoid robot platform, actuator product launch pending

Overview

This report focuses on Hesai's potential beneficiary position within the Nvidia humanoid robot reference platform ecosystem. Nvidia unveiled the Isaac GRooT Reference Humanoid Robot platform at GTC Taipei at Computex, using the Unitree H2/H2 Plus body and the Sharpa Wave dexterous hand. Goldman Sachs believes Hesai supplies LiDAR and robotic actuators to Unitree and Sharpa, and if the Nvidia/Unitree/Sharpa ecosystem advances toward mass production, Hesai's supply-chain positioning and market recognition could improve.

Core views

Goldman Sachs reiterates its Buy rating on Hesai's ADR and H shares. The core logic includes: first, the company holds a leading position in LiDAR, ADAS, autonomous mobility, and robotics; second, rising NOA penetration in China's NEV market and the launch of low-cost products will drive LiDAR adoption in mass-production vehicle models; third, overseas ADAS opportunities and global OEM design wins are expected to begin mass production in 2026E/2027E; fourth, verticals such as robotaxi and robotics provide incremental orders; fifth, the next-generation ATX products are entering the harvest period, and scale expansion plus operating leverage will support profit growth.

Analysis framework

The report combines analysis of industry events, supply-chain relationships, the company's product launch cadence, management revenue guidance, and financial forecasts, and uses a 12-month target price to assess total return potential. Valuation uses 20x 2030E non-GAAP EPS, discounted back to 2026E at an 11% cost of equity.

Methodology notes

• Valuation methodsDiscounted P/E valuation method

  20x 2030E non-GAAP EPS discounted to 2026E

  Goldman Sachs applies a 20x P/E multiple to Hesai's 2030E non-GAAP EPS and discounts it back to 2026E at an 11% CoE, arriving at 12-month target prices of US$35/HK$273 for the ADR/H shares.

• Equity attributesGS Factor Profile

  Growth, financial returns, valuation multiples, and composite percentile

  GS Factor Profile provides investment context for a stock by comparing it with covered stocks and industry peers across growth, financial returns, valuation multiples, and composite metrics.

• M&A scenarioM&A Rank

  Assessing acquisition probability on a scale of 1 to 3

  Goldman Sachs discloses that for its global coverage it uses an M&A framework to assess the probability of a potential acquisition; Rank 1 indicates high probability, Rank 2 medium probability, and Rank 3 low probability.

Asset mapping & comparison

Structured mapping from thesis to named assets (strengths, weaknesses, peers, risks).

• HESAI GROUP (HSAI.US; 02525.HK)

  The primary company covered in the report, rated Buy.

  Strengths

  The company is a leading LiDAR solutions provider with businesses spanning ADAS, autonomous mobility, and robotics; it held leading positions in global LiDAR revenue market share and robotaxi market share in 2024, and is expected to improve profitability through the ATX product cycle and operating leverage.

  Weaknesses

  2026E gross margin is expected to decline to 40% due to product mix and ASP pressure; there is still insufficient detail on sales volume, pricing, and costs for the humanoid robot business, so specific revenue and profit estimates have not yet been incorporated.

  Comparison

  The current valuation is 28x/20x 2026E/2027E P/E, below the company's 12-month forward P/E average of 37x since profitability in 4Q24.

  Risks

  Slower LiDAR penetration, intensified competition, customer pricing pressure, and policy risk.

• Nvidia Isaac GRooT ecosystem

  A potential demand catalyst and supply-chain validation scenario.

  Strengths

  Nvidia's open reference platform could help developers build, train, test, and deploy AI-powered robots more efficiently, while increasing market attention on the related supply chain.

  Weaknesses

  The platform is planned to be available in October 2026, and its commercialization pace and mass-production contribution still need to be observed.

  Comparison

  Compared with traditional automotive LiDAR demand, the humanoid robot ecosystem offers a new growth narrative, but with lower certainty than the existing ADAS and robotaxi businesses.

  Risks

  Platform launch timing, ecosystem adoption rate, mass-production scale, and customer switching risk could affect the extent to which Hesai actually benefits.

• Unitree / Sharpa supply chain

  Hesai's customer and partner ecosystem.

  Strengths

  The Unitree H2/H2 Plus was selected as the body for Nvidia's reference design, and the Sharpa Wave was selected as the dexterous hand solution; Hesai supplies both LiDAR and actuators to them, which supports its supply-chain positioning.

  Weaknesses

  The report discloses that the 2026 annual transaction cap under the Sharpa framework agreement is Rmb100mn, which is still relatively limited in scale at this stage.

  Comparison

  Compared with supplying only a single hardware component, Hesai's simultaneous supply relationships in both LiDAR and actuators may enhance cross-selling opportunities in the humanoid robot supply chain.

  Risks

  If product demand, delivery pace, or customer expansion at Unitree or Sharpa falls short of expectations, Hesai's related revenue contribution may be delayed.

Key data

• Report date2026-06-02The publication time of the Goldman Sachs equity research report was 2 June 2026 5:22PM CST.
• Nvidia platform eventIsaac GRooT Reference Humanoid Robot platformNvidia released this humanoid robot reference platform on June 1 at GTC Taipei at Computex.
• Platform availabilityOctober 2026The report states that the Nvidia Isaac GRooT reference humanoid robot is planned to be available in October 2026.
• Unitree/Sharpa configurationUnitree H2/H2 Plus; Sharpa WaveThe reference design uses the Unitree H2/H2 Plus body and the Sharpa Wave five-finger tactile dexterous hand, with 22-25 degrees of freedom per hand.
• Sharpa Wave task performance54% higher success rateSharpa said that after Nvidia GEAR Lab researchers pretrained using Sharpa Wave hands and human video data, success rates in complex tasks such as syringe manipulation and model car assembly improved by 54%.
• Hesai-Sharpa agreementRmb100mn annual cap in 2026Hesai announced a product supply framework agreement with Sharpa from March 25, 2026 to December 31, under which it will supply LiDAR products and robotic actuators, with a 2026 annual transaction cap of Rmb100mn.
• SGI revenue guidanceRmb100mn in 2026EManagement guided 2026E Strategic Growth Initiatives revenue at Rmb100mn, including KOSMO and robotic actuator modules.
• 2026E revenue growth50%Goldman Sachs expects 2026E revenue to grow 50%, supported by 101% yoy growth in LiDAR shipments, partly offset by a 27% yoy decline in blended ASP.
• 2026E gross margin40%Goldman Sachs expects 2026E gross margin at 40%, below 41.8% in 2025, mainly due to product mix changes and ASP pressure.
• 2026E EBIT growth139% yoyGoldman Sachs expects 2026E EBIT to grow 139% yoy, with EBIT margin rising from 9% in 2025 to 15%.
• Target price and upsideUS$35/HK$273; 75%/78%The 12-month target prices for the ADR/H shares are US$35/HK$273, implying upside of 75%/78%.
• Valuation multiples28x/20x 2026E/2027E P/EThe report states the stock is currently trading at 28x/20x 2026E/2027E P/E, below the 12-month forward P/E average of 37x since profitability in 4Q24.
• Market share33% global LiDAR revenue share; 61% global robotaxi shareGoldman Sachs says Hesai's global LiDAR revenue market share was 33% in 2024, and its global robotaxi market share was 61%.

Impact & implications

If the Nvidia Isaac GRooT ecosystem, Unitree body, and Sharpa dexterous hand products progress smoothly, the market may place greater recognition on Hesai's capabilities and position in the humanoid robot supply chain. However, Goldman Sachs has not yet incorporated specific revenue and profit from humanoid robot-related products into its model, as more details on sales volume, pricing, and costs are still needed. For the stock, near-term catalysts are the official launch of new products and supply-chain validation, while medium-term drivers still include scaling in ADAS, NOA, overseas OEM design wins, robotaxi, and robotics vertical scenarios.

Risks

• LiDAR adoption may be slower than expected.
• Industry competition may intensify.
• Customer pricing pressure may rise.
• Policy risk.
• Sales volume, pricing, and costs of humanoid robot-related products remain unclear, which may lead to revenue and profit contributions falling short of market expectations.
• The pace of overseas ADAS design wins and mass production may come later than expected.

What to watch

• The official launch and product details of Hesai's robotic actuator modules in the coming months.
• Progress toward the availability of the Nvidia Isaac GRooT reference humanoid robot in October 2026.
• Mass production and customer expansion of the Unitree H2/H2 Plus and Sharpa Wave within the Nvidia ecosystem.
• Delivery against the 2026E SGI revenue guidance of Rmb100mn from robotic actuators and KOSMO.
• Growth in LiDAR shipments, the extent of blended ASP decline, and changes in gross margin.
• NOA penetration in China's NEV market, rollout of low-cost LiDAR products, and launches of new OEM vehicle models.
• Mass-production ramp-up of overseas ADAS design wins in 2026E/2027E.
• Quarterly results, new design wins, and customer orders.