Editor's note: We at EqualOcean tracked the major funding rounds or industry events that took place in China’s tech space in April 2022. And the following is a list of deals that we have selected for you, based on a number of criteria including the funding amount, the financial backers, and the segments in which the startups operate.
Epicmems
On April 24, Epicmems (Chinese:开元通信) announced the completion of a Series A+ financing round of hundreds of millions of CNY. The financing was led by Hillhouse Capital, Sequoia Capital China, IDG Capital and Shunwei Capital, among other renowned investors. In addition, Oriza Holdings, Foxconn Industrial Internet, Zhanlu Asset, Oriental Fortune Capital, Hua Capital, Synthe Capital and KIP Capital also participated. Founded in 2018, Epicmems is a local Chinese chip company focusing on radio frequency front-end solutions.
Yunsilicon
On April 6, Yunsilicon (Chinese: 云脉芯联) completed a pre-Series A financing round worth hundreds of millions of CNY. This round was led by Lightspeed China Partners, followed by MTM Capital and Sky9 Capital, with follow-on contribution from long-time shareholder IDG Capital. This is the second time that Yunsilicon has received support and recognition from top investment institutions, following the angel round of funding completed in October last year. Founded in May 2021, Yunsilicon is dedicated to building network interconnect chips for large-scale data centers and cloud computing infrastructure.
Gokin Solar
Gokin Solar (Chinese: 高景太阳能) secured CNY 1.6 billion (USD 242 million) in its Series A funding round on April 13. In addition to the founding shareholders IDG Capital and Huafa Group, institutions such as China Life Investment Management Company, CCB Fund, Utrust Fund and Shenzhen Investment Holdings, as well as industrial investors such as Aiko Solar and Midea Capital also participated in this round. Founded in July 2019, Gokin Solar focuses on the R&D and manufacturing of high-efficiency large-size PV(Solar Photovoltaic) wafers.
LIONGO New Energy
On April 25, LIONGO New Energy (Chinese: 蓝固新能源), a manufacturer of battery electrolyte materials, announced the completion of a CNY 200 million (USD 300,500) Series A funding round. This round of financing was led by Oceanpine Capital, and well-known venture funds and companies such as CAS Fund of Funds, JN Tech, JZ Capital and Shanxi HCXF Group also participated in this round. Founded by Dr. Li Lifei in May 2021, LIONGO New Energy is dedicated to customizing and providing comprehensive electrolyte material solutions for customers.
Deemos Tech
Deemos Tech (Chinese: 影眸科技) announced the completion of a Pre-Series A round of funding of tens of millions of CNY, led by Sequoia China Seed Fund, followed by original shareholder Miracle Plus (formerly YC China). The founding team of Deemos Tech comes from ShanghaiTech University and has developed its own micron-level facial scanning system. Zhang Han, a partner at Sequoia China, expressed his optimism for the prospects of Deemos Tech in the whole virtual human industry and Metaverse.
Laiye Tech
Laiye Tech (Chinese: 来也科技) raised USD 70 million in a Series C++ funding round on April 19. The investment was jointly led by Hopu Fund, Youshan Capital and VMS Group. Other participants included Zhouji Tongli Asset, Lightspeed China and Lightspeed Venture Partners. Founded in 2015 by a team of Ivy League PhD holders, Laiye Tech's core technologies cover robotic process automation (RPA), natural language processing (NLP), and intelligent conversational interaction.
Haomo AI
Haomo AI (Chinese: 毫末智行) completed its Series A+ funding round for hundreds of millions of CNY on April 11. This round was led by Bank of China Group Investment Limited (BOCGI), followed by Shoucheng Holdings. Founded in November 2019, Haomo AI is an artificial intelligence technology company dedicated to autonomous driving.
HGC Tech
HGC Tech (Chinese: 华引芯) has received CNY 200 million (USD 30.52 million) in Series B2 funding round, led by Hongtai Aplus Fund, with follow-on investment from Guozhong Venture Capital. Founded in 2017, HGC Tech is a high-end LED chip and light source supplier.
Topxgun
On April 28, Topxgun (Chinese: 拓攻机器人) closed a CNY 100 million (USD 15 million) Series B+ round of financing from FSC Capital, Zijin Tech Venture Capital, Jinrun Investment, Handnice Capital, Htzj Capital Delta Capital and SAIF Partners. Headquartered in Shanghai, China, Topxgun is an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) flight control system development and solution provider.
Unitree Tech
On April 20, Unitree Tech (Chinese：宇树科技), a developer of high-performance quadruped robots, announced the completion of its Series B funding round to the tune of hundreds of millions of CNY. The investment was jointly led by Matrix Partners China and Dh Capital, with participation by Hexagon Group, Shunwei Capital, Winreal Investment and SCGC Group. In addition, Winsoul Capital continues to act as the exclusive financial advisor to Unitree Tech.
Xianglu Tech
Service Robot maker Xianglu Tech (Chinese：橡鹭科技) closed its Pre-Series A financing round worth hundreds of millions of CNY on April 25, led by Tencent Investment and IDG Capital. Long-time shareholder Source Code Capital also took part in the round. Founded in July 2021, Xianglu Tech focuses on the R&D of robotics technology and its real-life applications across a variety of daily scenarios.
Agile Robots
On April 18, IFT (Foxconn Industrial Internet) announced the completion of an exclusive strategic investment of USD 30 million in Agile Robots (Chinese：思灵机器人), a developer of intelligent systems for robot vision. Founded in 2018, Agile Robots has dual headquarters in Munich, Germany and Beijing, China. Its technology originates from the Robotics Institute of the German Aerospace Center and aims to push the boundaries of artificial intelligence and robotics.
Neptune Robotics
On April 20, Neptune Robotics (Chinese：纳百机器人) closed its Series A financing round for hundreds of millions of CNY, led by Sequoia China and with participation from existing shareholders Matrix Partners and SOSV. Founded in 2018, Neptune Robotics mainly provides mechanized cleaning services for large ships. Guo Shanshan, a partner at Sequoia China, said that effective cleaning can reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions by the shipping industry, and will also save considerable fuel costs.
Gantuai Tech
Industrial artificial intelligence company Gantuai Tech (Chinese：感图科技) announced the completion of a Series C financing round of hundreds of millions of CNY on April 18, led by GS Capital, with continued funding from Qualcomm Ventures and Broad Vision Funds. This is the seventh round of financing completed by Gantuai Tech, which was founded just four years ago.
Xmov AI
On April 6, Xmov AI (Chinese：魔珐科技), a Metaverse infrastructure company, announced the completion of its Series B and Series C rounds of financing for a total of USD 130 million. The Series B round was jointly backed by Fresh Capital and Jinsha Capital, with three consecutive rounds of additional investment from Sequoia China and 5Y Capital. The USD 110 million Series C round was jointly led by Softbank Vision Fund II, followed by Northern Light Venture Capitaland Index Venture Capital, with Index Capital acting as the exclusive financial advisor.