Industriekapital konkurriert um Embodied Intelligence.
Industrial capital and hot money are continuously flowing into the field of Embodied Intelligence.
Recently, Pasini, a company specializing in Embodied Intelligence integrated devices and sensors, has completed a new round of Series A financing. JD.com led the investment strategically, followed by several institutions such as Puyao Xinyie, Hongzhao Fund, and Zhangke Yaokun. Gengxin Capital China served as the exclusive strategic financial advisor.
Pasini is the sixth company in the field of Embodied Intelligence that JD.com has invested in over the past three months.
On the other hand, Meituan is also rapidly expanding its business in Embodied Intelligence. Recently, it has taken stakes in robotics companies such as Tashizhihang and Xinghaitu.
In addition to internet platform companies, battery manufacturer CATL and automobile manufacturer Geely also frequently appear on the shareholder lists of start - ups in the field of Embodied Intelligence.
This investment boom is shifting from Venture Capital (VC) to industrial capital, which is focused on the "ability for implementation and synergy".
Why are industrial partners so interested in Embodied Intelligence?
The two platform companies, JD.com and Meituan, have become the most active industrial partners in the field of Embodied Intelligence.
JD.com has not only invested in Pasini recently. Official information shows that in the past two months, JD.com has participated in the investment of six companies such as Qianxun Intelligence, Zhujidongli, and Zhongqing Robot, covering various fields from integrated devices to key components.
Compiled based on public information. Graphic/ by a reporter from "Sci - Tech Innovation Board Daily"
Meituan started earlier and more aggressively. Since the beginning of 2024, Meituan has made an investment on average every two months and has financed a total of eight robotics projects. It has also invested in leading projects such as Unitree Robotics and Galaxy Universal. In the establishment of Embodied Intelligence, Meituan has, so to speak, "captured half of the market".
Compiled based on public information. Graphic/ by a reporter from "Sci - Tech Innovation Board Daily"
In addition to internet giants, industrial capital from the manufacturing industry is also betting on Embodied Intelligence by acquiring stakes or initiating their own research projects, such as CATL, Geely, and Midea.
After interviews with several industry experts by reporters from "Sci - Tech Innovation Board Daily", the investment of industrial partners such as internet giants and industry leaders in companies in the field of Embodied Intelligence is mainly for strategic synergy reasons. The first large - scale applications of Embodied Intelligence are likely to occur in "semi - structured, repetitive, and strenuous" scenarios, such as express logistics, intelligent delivery, and factory inspection. This also explains why platform companies like Meituan and JD.com are so active.
During this year's Artificial Intelligence Conference, He Xiaodong, deputy director of JD.com's research institute and senior vice - president of JD Group, publicly expressed his thoughts on JD.com's intensive investment in Embodied Intelligence for the first time:
Firstly, it is a strategic long - term investment; secondly, Embodied Intelligence is part of the service ecosystem, and JD.com's ecosystem will benefit from the development of Embodied Intelligence; and thirdly, JD.com has a broad view of Embodied Intelligence and does not focus only on "humanoid robots", but on a broader concept of "brain + cerebellum + IO".
At the Artificial Intelligence Conference, several companies financed by JD.com jointly participated in the exhibition and even appeared at the same technology event to demonstrate their applicability in scenarios such as final delivery, warehouse cooperation, and factory inspection. This "group exhibition" is essentially a form of ecosystem synergy.
In the face of the double pressure of the aging population and the modernization of the manufacturing industry, industrial capital providers are trying to gain an advantage through forward - looking investments in Embodied Intelligence and build a closed - loop ecosystem early on. This investment drive is not only a technological pursuit but also a strategic bet on the future.
The preferred industrial capital
It is noteworthy that although investments in the fields of artificial intelligence and robotics have picked up pace since 2024, some start - ups in the field of Embodied Intelligence do not necessarily prefer VC institutions.
"Currently, leading robotics start - ups prefer industrial partners or investors with state - owned backgrounds when financing," said Ji Wei, founder and managing partner of Huaying Capital, in a recent interview. Huaying Capital has already invested in several companies in the field of Embodied Intelligence, including Independent Variable Robotics, Magic Atom, Xingdong Jiyuan, and DeepRobotics.
Ji Wei sees three reasons behind this trend: Firstly, industrial capital can provide real - world application scenarios and accelerate the implementation of orders; secondly, state - owned investors can ensure the company's capitalization path and resource synergy. "For pure financial investors, it will become increasingly difficult to acquire shares as the company progresses."
Industry projects confirm this view. Li Fshe, general manager of Siasun Robot & Automation Co., Ltd., recently revealed in an interview with a reporter from "Sci - Tech Innovation Board Daily" that the company is currently promoting Series A+ financing and also prefers capital providers with industrial resources.
The reason is that there is no shortage of VC funds, but compared with pure financial investments, start - ups in the field of Embodied Intelligence need orders, computing power, and cooperation channels in the entire value chain more.
Behind the investment boom: The beginnings of bubbles and order
With the influx of capital, there are also warnings that there may be phenomena such as "duplicate work" and "blind following of trends" in the field of Embodied Intelligence in the short term.
The CTO of a subsidiary of a listed robotics company openly admitted to a reporter from "Sci - Tech Innovation Board Daily" that there are currently many robotics companies in the market whose "products, especially technologies, overlap significantly" and that some companies have not achieved real differentiation in their design work.
"In such times, it depends on the judgment of investors whether to invest in the ecosystem or in demonstrators," said this man.
"Entrepreneurs prefer to have state - owned investors with government resources first and then internet giants as investors. VC investors will instead become the 'acquirers'," said an anonymous institutional investor. Driven by hot money, the valuations of some projects are constantly rising, while technological progress and order implementation are not keeping up.
Overall, the Embodied Intelligence industry is in a critical phase of transition from "technology verification" to "scenario implementation". Amid the bubbles, a healthy industry order is also beginning to form. From industrial capital to integrated device manufacturers, clearer requirements are now being placed on the creation of scenario values and delivery capabilities.
During this year's Artificial Intelligence Conference, reporters from "Sci - Tech Innovation Board Daily" learned from conversations with representatives of robotics manufacturers that manufacturers are focusing more on researching suitable application scenarios and mass production this year. Many companies are also accelerating the construction of their production lines.
For example, Guo Yandong, founder and CEO of Zhipingfang, told a reporter from "Sci - Tech Innovation Board Daily" that the company has already received about 500 orders this year, which are to be executed immediately after mass production. The company's first mass - production plant will be completed in September, and it is planned to achieve an annual delivery capacity of over ten thousand devices by 2028.
This article is from the WeChat account "Sci - Tech Innovation Board Daily". Author: Zhang Yangyang. Published by 36Kr with permission.