> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://bytevyte.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Chinese-Backed Humanoid Robot Factory in Serbia Becomes Europe's First Mass-Production Base - URL: https://bytevyte.com/chinese-backed-humanoid-robot-factory-in-serbia-becomes-europes-first-mass-production-base/ - Published: 2026-08-31T17:08:37.000Z - Updated: 2026-08-31T17:08:37.000Z - Description: The humanoid robot factory in Serbia, built by Minth Group and AgiBot, is Europe's first mass-production base, with plans for 20,000 units a year. - Author: Bytevyte Editorial - Tags: ai-beats The humanoid robot factory in Serbia that came online in Šabac over the weekend is Europe's first mass-production base for the machines, and it runs on Chinese technology. Minth Group and AgiBot, the two companies behind the plant, rolled out the first unit, a humanoid labeled 001, which President Aleksandar Vučić presented with a certification plaque at the August 29 launch. The opening lands weeks after Washington blocked imports of Chinese humanoid robots on national security grounds; the same technology now has a manufacturing address inside Europe. The plant, Serbia's first robot factory, is phase one of a larger project. Built with an initial investment of €20 million, the facility spans roughly 3,000 square meters and is configured to assemble humanoid robots and quadruped robot dogs while calibrating and testing their motion and vision systems. Minth Group expects the site to complete 500 humanoid deliveries this year and to reach annual output value above €100 million at full ramp, supporting around 280 high-end manufacturing and research jobs in the region. ## Humanoid Robot Factory in Serbia: From a €20 Million Plant to a 20,000-Unit Park Behind the launch is a planned robotics industrial park with a total investment of about €200 million. At full build, it could raise annual capacity to as many as 20,000 humanoid robots and robot dogs, with products aimed at European and global markets. Vučić has said he expects the Šabac line to assemble, and later produce, more than 5,000 robots a year, and the complex is also slated to make drones, automated machinery and batteries. | Metric | Šabac plant (phase 1) | Robotics park (full build) | | --------------- | --------------------- | -------------------------- | | Investment | €20 million | \~€200 million planned | | Annual capacity | 5,000+ unit target | Up to 20,000 units | | 2026 deliveries | 500 humanoids | — | The first output already has a destination: early units are earmarked for service scenarios around EXPO 2027, the world exposition Belgrade will host. Minth, an automotive components supplier based in Jiaxing in Zhejiang province, has operated in Serbia since 2018 and now runs ten factories in the country, so the robot line extends an established local footprint rather than starting fresh. AgiBot supplies the humanoid designs and the robotics know-how, making Šabac the first place where Chinese-designed humanoids are built in volume on European soil. ## A Military Dimension From Day One Vučić framed the launch in security terms. He said the Serbian Armed Forces would be strengthened with robots so the country could be defended, and that the first military application would be presented within 15 days. Serbia has also bought quadruped robot dogs from Minth, and Vučić said they would be demonstrated in an army exercise, with Serbian engineers having integrated software for remote weapon control into the platforms. The defense dimension is precisely the kind of application the U.S. ban was built around, and it gives the Šabac plant a dual-use profile that Western governments are likely to scrutinize. For Belgrade, the factory is a route to advanced robotics capacity without relying on European or American suppliers; for the Chinese partners, it is an entry point into European procurement and a hedge against closed markets elsewhere. ## What the Šabac Line Changes for Europe The humanoid robot factory in Serbia converts Chinese-designed manufacturing into an export business anchored inside Europe instead of shipped from Asia. That shifts the ground under Western humanoid makers, which are still scaling their own lines, and it poses a direct question to European buyers: whether units assembled in Serbia can price against machines built in China, and whether the EU treats Serbian output as regional production or as a back door for Chinese supply chains. The project has moved fast. Vučić announced the cooperation with AgiBot and Minth in February, and in May he visited Minth's factory under construction in Jiaxing, a trip he compared to stepping into the 22nd century. Three months later the base was operating. Trade minister Jagoda Lazarević has described the launch as important news for Serbia, which aims to hold the first high-capacity humanoid manufacturing base in Europe. One distinction matters for how the plant should be read. For now Šabac performs final assembly, calibration and testing, with designs and components coming from China; Vučić has described the goal as assembling and later producing more than 5,000 robots a year. The staged approach means the finished unit carries a Serbian assembly label while the deeper supply chain remains Chinese, and that split is where the price competition with Western rivals will be decided. Minth brings a running start. The Jiaxing-based group is a major global supplier of automotive components, has invested in Serbia since 2018 and already operates ten factories there, giving the robot line an existing base of facilities, workers and local relationships. Robotics is the newest product on that platform rather than a bet built from scratch, which changes the cost picture for any European competitor. The U.S. ban sharpens the stakes. Washington moved to block imports of Chinese humanoid robots weeks before the Šabac launch, closing the largest Western market for Chinese designs at a stroke. Europe now becomes the market where Chinese makers can offset that loss, and Serbia is the entry point. As an EU candidate rather than a member, Serbia sits outside the bloc's customs border, so the terms governing robot exports from Šabac into the EU will shape the plant's economics. Whether the EU answers with tariffs, origin rules or procurement preferences will decide how much of the European market the Šabac line can capture. Vučić has said the robots will be applied across healthcare, agriculture, industry and defense, with industrial production the first target and education and public services to follow. The factory currently turns out several humanoid models, and the first unit demonstrated capabilities such as Chinese calligraphy, folding clothes, playing chess and dancing at the opening ceremony. Qin Ronghua, chairman of Minth Group, has described the project as combining Chinese supply-chain integration with Serbia's location advantages to open Europe's high-end manufacturing market. ## Why This Matters The humanoid robot factory in Serbia is Europe's first mass-production base for humanoids, and it is run by Chinese companies at a moment when the United States has shut its market to the same technology. For European decision-makers, Šabac previews the competitive terrain ahead: Chinese supply chains can now assemble humanoids on the continent's doorstep, and the pricing, procurement and policy choices made in response will decide where the next generation of factory robots comes from. ## Related Articles - [Europe's First Humanoid Robot Production Line Is a Bosch Plant Making Robots for Rent](https://bytevyte.com/europes-first-humanoid-robot-production-line-is-a-bosch-plant-making-robots-for-rent/) - [Humanoid Robot Shipments Jump 272% as AgiBot Overtakes Unitree in China-Dominated Market](https://bytevyte.com/humanoid-robot-shipments-jump-272-as-agibot-overtakes-unitree-in-china-dominated-market/) - [Humanoid Becomes Europe's First Humanoid Robotics Unicorn with $152M Series A](https://bytevyte.com/humanoid-becomes-europes-first-humanoid-robotics-unicorn-with-152m-series-a/) ✔Human Verified --- *Researched and cross-referenced against primary sources by the Bytevyte editorial team. This article was generated with the assistance of artificial intelligence and reviewed by the Bytevyte editorial team.*