Shein, the China-founded e-commerce and fast-fashion company, is due to debut in Hong Kong on Tuesday in an initial public offering (IPO) expected to raise $1.7 billion, making it one of the city’s largest share sales this year. The offering comes during a surge in Chinese listings linked to investor enthusiasm for artificial intelligence and robotics, alongside a growing preference among companies to remain in Hong Kong or mainland markets. CXMT, China’s largest memory chipmaker, raised more than $8.6 billion in Shanghai in July, while its shares gained 466% on their first trading day. Unitree, a leading Chinese humanoid-robot maker, listed in Shanghai in August, with its shares rising 460% on debut before later falling more than 40% from that peak. LSEG said IPOs and secondary listings in Hong Kong and Shanghai had raised more than $54 billion so far in 2026, above last year’s total of more than $46 billion. Their combined proceeds represented roughly 21% of global fundraising, behind Nasdaq’s roughly 55% share, which was boosted by SpaceX’s $75 billion IPO in June. Analysts said retail investors heavily influence Shanghai trading and that AI and robotics are driving the IPO boom. CXMT’s listing also highlighted China’s technology self-sufficiency ambitions: founded in 2016, the company reported first-quarter 2026 revenue of 50.8 billion yuan, or about $7.5 billion, up more than 700% year-on-year as AI chip demand increased. Stricter U.S. and Chinese scrutiny of major Chinese companies listing overseas, particularly in advanced technology, has encouraged more firms to list closer to home. Hong Kong deals involving Luxshare Precision Industry and Zhongji Innolight reflected demand for advanced technologies, while robotics companies AGIBOT and Deep Robotics are also considering Hong Kong or Shanghai listings. Shein had explored U.S. and London listings before choosing Hong Kong. Investors remain concerned that China could experience an AI bubble, demanding sustainable revenue, visible profit margins and realistic valuations. Shein’s valuation is about $27 billion, well below its peak a few years ago, partly because of U.S. and EU moves to restrict de minimis tax exemptions for small-package imports.