Breaking Through Technical Bottlenecks, Surpassing 20 Million Followers... 16 Takeaways and 5 Insights | FreeS Fund Blackboard · November
Continue doubling down on consumer and deep tech.
FreeS Fund Newsletter — November Edition. We want to share our latest updates with the friends who have long followed and supported us:
- FreeS Fund invested in Longmu Medical.
- FreeS Fund was named to "China's Top 10 Most Influential Early-Stage Investment Institutions," "Enabler of the Year — Best Investment Institution," and "Top 10 Best Consumer Investment Funds of 2018"; FreeS Fund founding partner Feng Li was named to "2018 Jiemian China's Top 50 Venture Capitalists," among other honors.
We also have good news from the FreeS family:
- Deep Tech: Qingtao Energy announced a breakthrough in solid-state battery mass production; DeepCare deployed its AI dental imaging system at Beijing Stomatological Hospital.
- Consumer: Three Squirrels became the first brand on Taobao and Tmall to surpass 20 million followers; Kuaifuwu reached delivery partnerships with Dangdang, Zhuanzhuan, Taobao, and Tmall.
- Awards: Club Factory founder and CEO Yun Lou was named to "36 Entrepreneurs Under 36 Making a Difference"; Longmu Medical won second prize nationally at the COA "Orthopedic Innovation and Translation Award"; NextVPU, SoundAI, and Yifei Automation were named to iFenxi's "2018 Top 50 Chinese AI Innovative Enterprises"; SoundAI was named to 36Kr's 2018 Enterprise Rankings "Top 10 AI Intelligent Voice"; Maifei Technology was named to 36Kr's 2018 Enterprise Rankings "Top 10 Most Innovative Enterprise Services" and "Top 20 Most Commercially Valuable Startups of 2018"; Onion Math was named to 36Kr's 2018 Enterprise Rankings "Top 15 Online Education Kings"; ZhiGuan was named to "Future Brand: Top 15 Best Emerging Brands of the Year," and ZhiGuan founder Tang Liang was named to "Innovator of the Year: Top 5 Entrepreneurs"; IceKredit was named to "The 2018 Fintech 250."
As a young fund, FreeS Fund will continue to stay grounded and push forward, while diligently exploring the unknown — looking forward to constantly encountering innovation and the extraordinary.
FreeS Fund News
1
FreeS Fund Invests in Longmu Medical
Recently, Beijing Longmu Medical Co., Ltd. ("Longmu Medical"), a high-tech AI enterprise, announced the completion of a seed round of tens of millions of RMB, co-invested by FreeS Fund and Lei Ming, one of Baidu's seven founding members. Longmu Medical is dedicated to applying cutting-edge AI technology, combined with top-tier medical teams, to build world-class AI medical products that meet the actual needs of clinicians. (See: [PEDaily] Quick News | AI Company Longmu Medical Completes Tens of Millions in Seed Funding, Co-Invested by FreeS Fund and Lei Ming)
2
FreeS Fund Named to "China's Top 10 Most Influential Early-Stage Investment Institutions"
On November 28, 2018, 36Kr reviewed the new economy landscape of 2018 and released its 2018 New Economy King third-party institution rankings. Based on research and platform data, scoring investment institutions across dimensions including number of investments, investment amount, project participation, and number of star projects, FreeS Fund was named to "China's Top 10 Most Influential Early-Stage Investment Institutions." (See: [36Kr] 2018 New Economy King Annual Rankings)
3
FreeS Fund Wins "Enabler of the Year — Best Investment Institution"
On November 20, 2018, the 2018 China Cosmetics Innovation Conference and 5th Beauty Internet Conference, hosted by Jumeili, was held in Shanghai, including the Black Swan Awards ceremony. The Black Swan Award is the first industry award in China's cosmetics sector to focus on "innovation, entrepreneurship, and venture capital." Capturing the most future-valuable cosmetics startup projects from a capital perspective and helping emerging brands grow, FreeS Fund won "Enabler of the Year — Best Investment Institution." (See: [Jumeili] China Cosmetics Black Swan Awards Ceremony Concludes, 6 Categories and 17 Awards Finally Announced)
4
FreeS Fund Named to "Top 10 Best Consumer Investment Funds of 2018"
Recently, the "11th China High-Growth Chain Industry Summit and 2018 Annual China High-Growth Chain Brand Awards Ceremony" opened in Beijing, with awards reflecting new characteristics: post-80s/90s becoming the new generation of consumer mainstays, new education perspectives, and new home consumption concepts. FreeS Fund was named to "Top 10 Best Consumer Investment Funds of 2018." (See: [Kaidianbang] Lawson #1, Ziyan Baiweiji #2! | 11th High-Growth Chain Industry Summit Held in Beijing)
5
FreeS Fund Founding Partner Feng Li Named to "2018 Jiemian China's Top 50 Venture Capitalists"
Recently, Jiemian and Yi'an Insurance Broker jointly released the "China's Top Venture Capitalists" ranking for the second time. The ranking primarily evaluates mainstream/active venture capitalists' new investments and exits over the past three years. Based on their performance and their participation and contribution in these investments, FreeS Fund founding partner Feng Li was named to "2018 Jiemian China's Top 50 Venture Capitalists." (See: [Jiemian] 2018 Jiemian China's Top Venture Capitalists Revealed, Neil Shen, Qin Liu, and Lei Zhang Lead Top Three)
FreeS Perspectives
▍Feng Li: Investing in Consumer Brands Today Is Much Harder Than the Last Cycle
Investing in consumer brands today is much harder than the last cycle. Here's why:
From a pure investment standpoint, traffic matters enormously for brands. Every shift in traffic creates opportunities for new brands to grow and gain visibility. This time, the traffic shift is particularly significant. That's one challenge.
The second challenge: from a content format perspective, it used to be mostly text and images. Now text, images, video, and other formats have all proliferated. Combined, these bring one benefit and one drawback. The benefit is genuinely new traffic. The drawback is that the gap between brands becomes enormous. Will brands become niche and beautiful, or bigger brands, or perhaps more consolidated, scaled brands? That's a challenge for us.
Third, retail is a full-chain efficiency competition. The new brands and new retail players that have emerged in the past year no longer stay in one quadrant of the chart — they're all moving toward the center. That's a challenge for entrepreneurs, who now need to understand online and offline, retail and experience, marketing and supply chain. It also creates challenges for us as investors. (See: [Jumeili] Innovation Conference — Feng Li: The Rise of a New Generation of FMCG Brands)
FreeS Family Updates
1
Deep Tech | Qingtao Energy Announces Breakthrough in Solid-State Battery Mass Production
Recently, a Xinhua News Agency report sent waves through the electric vehicle sector: Chinese battery R&D company "Qingtao (Kunshan) Energy Development Co., Ltd." announced a breakthrough in solid-state battery mass production, with its first solid-state battery production line already operational. This technology will enable domestic electric vehicles to achieve range exceeding 1,000 km.
The company evolved from "Jiangsu Qingtao New Energy Technology Co., Ltd.," founded in May 2014 by Tsinghua University professor and Chinese Academy of Sciences academician Cewen Nan and several Tsinghua PhD graduates. (See: [ByteDance] Major Breakthrough! This Technology Will Enable Domestic Electric Vehicles to Break 1,000km Range, Countdown for Fuel Vehicles Begins)
2
Deep Tech | DeepCare Deploys AI Dental Imaging System at Beijing Stomatological Hospital
Recently, DeepCare's AI dental imaging quality control system PrimeDental-QC and AI-assisted dental disease diagnosis system PrimeDental-DI, co-developed with Beijing Stomatological Hospital, were deployed at Beijing Stomatological Hospital (a top-tier tertiary Grade A specialized stomatological hospital in China).
The PrimeDental product series launched this time combines DeepCare's core AI technology with the expert and data advantages of Beijing Stomatological Hospital, representing China's first AI dental imaging system, achieving both imaging quality control and disease-assisted diagnosis functions. The system will significantly improve the efficiency and quality of dental medical imaging diagnosis, providing patients with more efficient and convenient dental medical services. (See: [DeepCare] DeepCare AI Dental Imaging System Deployed at Beijing Stomatological Hospital)
3
Consumer | Three Squirrels Becomes First Brand on Taobao and Tmall to Surpass 20 Million Followers
Three Squirrels' data shows Tmall Double 11 all-channel daily sales of 682 million RMB, up 30.51% year-over-year, with 451 million RMB from its Tmall flagship store alone, securing its seventh consecutive Double 11 championship in the food category. More notably, Three Squirrels' Double 11 transaction volume exceeded the combined sales of the second through ninth-ranked food brands on Tmall, with the second and third place brands combined only reaching 65% of its sales.
Moreover, fueled by the explosive traffic of Double 11, Three Squirrels' Tmall store followers broke through 20 million, becoming the first brand on Taobao and Tmall to surpass 20 million followers — surpassing international heavyweights like Nike, UNIQLO, and Xiaomi. (See: [New Retail Think Tank] Beating Xiaomi and Nike, First Tmall Store with 20 Million+ Followers Born)
4
Consumer | Kuaifuwu Reaches Delivery Partnerships with Dangdang, Zhuanzhuan, Taobao, and Tmall
Kuaifuwu reached a delivery partnership with Dangdang, providing same-day delivery express service. For Dangdang orders placed before 11 a.m., Kuaifuwu delivers by 9 p.m. the same day.
Dangdang is one of China's earliest listed e-commerce sites. It chose to partner with Kuaifuwu based on Kuaifuwu's same-day delivery capabilities. Small and medium merchants can also access Kuaifuwu's same-day delivery service, as Kuaifuwu has officially integrated with Cainiao Network, allowing merchants with stores on Taobao and Tmall to select Kuaifuwu for shipping. (See: [Kuaifuwu Same-City Express] Kuaifuwu Reaches Delivery Partnerships with Dangdang, Zhuanzhuan, Taobao, and Tmall, Providing Same-Day Delivery Express Service)
5
FreeS Family Award News
▍Club Factory Founder and CEO Yun Lou Named to "36 Entrepreneurs Under 36 Making a Difference"
"36 Under 36" is an award launched by 36Kr, aiming to find young people who are innovating with precision and changing the world — individuals whose achievements and actions demonstrate "excellence far beyond their peers." Evaluated across dimensions of innovation, perseverance, and progressiveness, 36 entrepreneurs under 36 making a difference were selected. Club Factory CEO Yun Lou made the list, alongside ByteDance founder Yiming Zhang. (See: [36Kr] Major Release! 36 Entrepreneurs Under 36 Making a Difference: Those Who Influence the Now Create the Future)
▍Longmu Medical Wins Second Prize Nationally at COA "Orthopedic Innovation and Translation Award"
From November 21-24, 2018, the 20th Academic Conference of the Chinese Orthopaedic Association and 13th COA Academic Congress were held at Xiamen International Conference & Exhibition Center. In the conference's "Orthopedic Innovation and Translation Award" competition, the Beijing Longmu Medical team stood out from 30 top competing teams nationwide with their entry "Development and Application of AI Three-Dimensional Joint Replacement Surgery Planning System," ultimately winning second prize nationally. The "Orthopedic Innovation and Translation Award," established by the Chinese Orthopaedic Association, aims to encourage more young orthopedic doctors to think diligently, innovate boldly, achieve more breakthrough research results, and better translate them into clinical applications to further serve orthopedic patients.
▍NextVPU, SoundAI, and Yifei Automation Named to iFenxi's "2018 Top 50 Chinese AI Innovative Enterprises"
Recently, at the "2018 iFenxi China AI Summit," iFenxi, based on nearly two years of research on hundreds of outstanding enterprises in the AI field, rigorously evaluated the competitiveness of AI enterprises across sectors. Evaluation criteria included technology, product, customer base, customer acquisition, scenario understanding, ecosystem, and scale, with the 4-6 most important dimensions selected based on industry characteristics. Ultimately, SoundAI, NextVPU, and Yifei Automation were named to the "2018 iFenxi Top 50 Chinese AI Innovative Enterprises." (See: [iFenxi] Major Release: 2018 iFenxi Top 50 Chinese AI Innovative Enterprises)
▍36Kr 2018 Enterprise Rankings: Maifei Technology Named to "Top 10 Most Innovative Enterprise Services," SoundAI Named to "Top 10 AI Intelligent Voice," Onion Math Named to "Top 15 Online Education Kings"
On November 28, 2018, the WISE 2018 New Business Conference focused on new capital, new technology, and new information deeply integrating to transform new economy models and business innovation. Based on publicly disclosed funding and valuation data, company scale and tier were determined, and investors selected from a professional perspective the leading companies they believed would win in their respective niche tracks.
Maifei Technology was named to 36Kr's 2018 Enterprise Rankings "Top 10 Most Innovative Enterprise Services"; SoundAI was named to 36Kr's 2018 Enterprise Rankings "Top 10 AI Intelligent Voice"; Onion Math was named to 36Kr's 2018 Enterprise Rankings "Top 15 Online Education Kings." (See: [36Kr] 2018 New Economy King Annual Rankings)
▍Maifei Technology Wins "Top 20 Most Commercially Valuable Startups of 2018"
Recently, the 2018 Global Youth Entrepreneurs Conference, hosted by Bufan Business and FanZhuo Capital, was held in Beijing. Evaluated across dimensions including growth speed, business operations, financial status, and development prospects, Maifei Technology won "Top 20 Most Commercially Valuable Startups of 2018." (See: [Maifei Technology] Maifei Named "2018 Most Commercially Valuable Startup")
▍ZhiGuan Wins "Future Brand: Top 15 Best Emerging Brands of the Year"; ZhiGuan Founder Tang Liang Named to "Innovator of the Year: Top 5 Entrepreneurs"
On November 20, 2018, the 2018 China Cosmetics Innovation Conference and 5th Beauty Internet Conference, hosted by Jumeili, was held in Shanghai, including the Black Swan Awards ceremony. The Black Swan Awards aim to uncover industry-leading innovation cases, discover the most promising emerging brands, and identify individuals and institutions driving industry innovation. ZhiGuan won "Future Brand: Top 5 Emerging Brands of the Year," while ZhiGuan founder Tang Liang was named to "Innovator of the Year: Top 5 Entrepreneurs." (See: [Jumeili] China Cosmetics Black Swan Awards Ceremony Concludes, 6 Categories and 17 Awards Finally Announced)
▍IceKredit Named to CB Insights Global Fintech 250 for Two Consecutive Years
CB Insights' Fintech 250 ranking is one of the most influential fintech rankings globally. Following its 2017 selection, IceKredit made the list again this year, alongside companies including Kabbage, Coinbase, CircleUp, ZestFinance, Affirm, Credit Karma, Ant Group, JD Finance, Lufax, Pintec, and Wacai, together comprising the 250 most promising global fintech enterprises of 2018. (See: [IceKredit] Major News | IceKredit Named to CB Insights Global Fintech 250 for Two Consecutive Years)
FreeS Family Perspectives
▍"Squirrel Dad" Zhang Liaoyuan: Every Stage of Entrepreneurship Is a Race Against Speed and Time
Over the past six-plus years, the internal and external environment has been constantly changing. At basically every stage, we've been racing against speed and time, working around the relationship between speed and time, and between traffic and product.
Online competition is brutal. Traffic is dynamic — not growing means declining, and it's a cliff-like drop that doesn't give you any breathing room. Unlike offline: if you open a store here, no one can take it away. It climbs slowly and falls slowly. Online economy is traffic economy; speed and time matter enormously, and so does how much mindshare your traffic can build. (See: [FreeS Fund] 4.5-Hour Deep Dive, 10,000-Word Essence: Dialogue with Three Squirrels' Zhang Liaoyuan (Part 2) — Every Stage Is a Race Against Speed and Time)
▍Changingedu Founder Changke Liu: When Revenue Growth Falls Below Spending Growth, You're in Danger
Looking back at training institution development over the past 20 years, many institutions experienced capital chain ruptures. The core issue lies in the prepayment system, which gives operators the illusion that "the money is mine" — when in fact it's all liability. So from a management perspective, you must understand some financial basics and keep a close eye on the cash flow statement. When you see revenue growth falling below spending growth, you're in danger. (See: [JingMedia] O2O Battlefield: The Last One Standing? Why Is Changingedu Obsessed with Empowering the Supply Side?)
▍IceKredit Founder Lingyun Gu: Traditional Financial Institutions Entering the Smart Era Face a Stock Market
Traditional financial institutions face three main pain points in their smart transformation. Take banks: first, banks have internal data but lack other dimensions of user data, such as behavioral data and consumption data. Second, due to insufficient talent reserves (people who understand both internet finance business and technology), banks are unfamiliar with internet finance risk control models. Finally, for most city commercial banks and rural commercial banks, because they're located in third- and fourth-tier cities, hiring data scientists and chief risk officers is extremely difficult. All of this creates enormous market opportunities for third-party fintech companies like IceKredit.
However, as online lending regulation tightens and banks push into internet finance for small and micro enterprises and consumer finance, the window for traditional financial institutions to become smart and AI-driven is roughly the first half of 2019 to the first half of 2020 — after which it will enter the stock market era. (See: [People's Daily] Gu Lingyun: Traditional Financial Institutions Have Pain Points in Smart Transformation, Third-Party Fintech Companies Face Opportunities)
▍Onion Math CEO Lin Feng Yang: Believe Society Will Change Its Perception of the Internet
Going forward, we'll deepen our cooperation with Tencent's Growth Guardian Platform. On one hand, we'll continue iterating and optimizing mini-program features. On the other hand, we hope to integrate backend data so that parents on the Growth Guardian Platform can see not just how much less time their child spends gaming, but also how much time they spend learning.
Electronic products — whether computers, phones, or other tools — are essentially tools for people to engage with the world. If we can help parents realize that through these tools, children can achieve more effective, rapid, and meaningful growth, I believe society will change its perception of the internet. (See: [Onion Math] A Letter to Parents — From Onion Math CEO Lin Feng Yang)
9 Harvests and 4 Insights in Spring | FreeS Newsletter · March
