Taking the Next Step This Summer: 7 Companies Announce Funding | FreeS Family Funding News · Vol 11
Walk alongside more outstanding founders.
The "FreeS Family Funding News" column regularly publishes funding updates from FreeS Fund portfolio companies. In addition to new investments, we also cover follow-on rounds for companies we've previously backed. Together, we witness every step of innovative enterprises' growth — from 0 to 1, from 1 to 10, and from 10 to 100.
This Issue at a Glance:
- Consumer & TMT: FreeS Fund angel-round portfolio company Junoco raised $6.3 million in Series A funding, with FreeS Fund continuing to invest; Duān Mù Liáng Jǐn (端木良锦) announced its Series A+ round, with FreeS Fund continuing to invest; Funmangic raised multi-million RMB in angel funding, with FreeS Fund as the sole investor;
- Hard & Soft Tech: FreeS Fund angel-round portfolio company NextVPU raised hundreds of millions of RMB in Series C funding; FreeS Fund angel-round portfolio company Xingzhixing Robotics completed Series A funding;
- Biotech & Healthcare: Yanwei Technology raised 50 million RMB in angel funding, co-led by FreeS Fund and HSG; Kunmai Medical completed multi-million RMB in Pre-A funding, with FreeS Fund participating.
(This roundup covers only funding information publicly disclosed in June and July, sorted by the date each company's funding news was announced.)
Reader Giveaway There are two short videos in this article exploring the soil from which Western luxury brands emerged, and how Chinese culture influences domestic brands. Share your thoughts on Chinese culture and the consumer market at the end of the article. The 6 most thoughtful commenters will receive a canvas bag designed by Duān Mù Liáng Jǐn.
▲ Image source: Junoco
San Francisco-based sustainable skincare brand Junoco completed a $6.3 million Series A round led by Yuanjing Capital, with FreeS Fund continuing to invest.
**/ From the Investors / **
In recent years, two notable trends have emerged in Western consumer markets. First, consumers represented by Gen Z have become more diverse in their preferences while placing greater emphasis on independent judgment and self-identity. Traditional one-way marketing approaches, if mishandled, can even trigger backlash from this demographic. Second, COVID-19 has led to more dispersed lifestyles in Europe and America, with consumption shifting from high-end malls in major cities to mid-tier shopping centers in smaller cities. In e-commerce, DTC channels have seen significant growth.
These two trends actually impose higher-level demands on all competitors: on one hand, brand value communication needs to resonate more broadly; on the other hand, companies must adapt to channel changes in a timely manner, adjust strategies, and maintain the speed of product reach while synchronizing online and offline marketing.
Junoco has grasped the trends mentioned above and, based on its own strengths, found its entry point by focusing on streamlined sustainable skincare.
For example, traditional American skincare brands are primarily offline-oriented, lacking closed-loop online operations. They struggle to generate deep insights into Gen Z consumers through precise data analysis, let alone achieve value resonance with them. Meanwhile, emerging online skincare brands mostly employ fast-moving consumer goods e-commerce tactics, focusing more on traffic monetization logic while lacking the awareness and experience to build brand-customer connections.
Therefore, Junoco determined from the outset to adopt an omnichannel business model with deep penetration both online and offline. On one hand, Junoco provides better online service through more accurate customer data analysis and engagement. On the other hand, Junoco insists on building out offline beauty retail channels to strengthen interaction with target customer groups. The sense of identity generated through offline channels quickly distinguishes it from other online skincare brands.
The Junoco team's strengths lie in their insight into market trends and precise positioning of the business model, but more importantly, in their extreme attention to detail and unwavering courage in execution.
Differentiation in the DTC industry is difficult to measure, yet inadequate execution of details can easily reduce strategy to mere formality (as with omnichannel online-offline approaches, where often only one side is done well).
We are pleased to see that the Junoco team has executed with great care both online and offline, and has earned consumers' recognition of both product value and brand value. We also recognize that building a brand requires more patience. But we believe that once the foundation of brand value is solidly established, Junoco will enter a rapid growth phase and achieve long-term development.
**/ Company Profile / **
JUNOCO is a DTC sustainable beauty brand group founded in 2018 in San Francisco. As the group's first sustainable skincare brand, JUNOCO has launched multiple hit products over the past two years, including a zero-microplastic "10-ingredient cleansing balm" that sold 500,000 units in its first year and is now the category sales leader across the entire US internet, as well as a waterless cleansing powder using upcycled ingredients, among others. Going forward, JUNOCO is committed to becoming a next-generation sustainable skincare brand management company. (For full coverage, see [36Kr]: "Number One Cleansing Balm Brand Across US E-commerce, Chinese-Founded JUNOCO Aims to Become Next-Generation Sustainable Skincare Brand Management Company")
▲ Image source: NextVPU
AI vision chip design company NextVPU announced its Series C funding round, with Shanghai Gongrong Sci-Tech Fund, managed by ICBC Capital, leading with a multi-hundred-million-RMB investment.
**/ From the Investors / **
**NextVPU is a leading provider of edge-side AI visual processing chips and supporting solutions ("edge-side" refers to mobile and IoT devices).
In recent years, with rapidly growing demand for edge-side AI computing power and deep 3D visual image processing, the team's long-term accumulation and technological leadership in edge-side AI chips have gradually paid off. Whether in mass deployment of automotive-grade chips, or in industrial and consumer robotics, as well as intelligent security and other fields, NextVPU's products have found broad applications.
As NextVPU's angel investor, FreeS Fund continues to be optimistic about the team and support the company's development.
**/ Company Profile / **
NextVPU was established in May 2016 in Shanghai Zhangjiang Hi-Tech Park and is a Shanghai high-tech enterprise and "specialized, refined, distinctive, innovative" (专精特新) enterprise, focused on developing high-performance, low-power edge-side AI visual processing chips and supporting solutions. The company has successfully mass-produced three different chip series — N, D, and V — which have been widely applied in intelligent driving, robotics, security, home cameras, industrial inspection, and other fields.
In neural network computing acceleration, the most commonly emphasized aspect of AI chips, NextVPU has developed an AI computing core with high energy efficiency that offers advantages in neural network compatibility, AI algorithm deployment accuracy, and hardware engine utilization. In 3D perception and real-time visual localization and mapping, NextVPU has developed a uniquely distinctive 3D depth and geometric computing engine used worldwide for robot localization and environmental perception, high-precision vehicle positioning and HD map construction, and metaverse automatic content generation, among other applications. In the automotive sector, NextVPU provides scarce domestically produced intelligent automotive-grade chips that have achieved mass production and vehicle installation, used for front and rear advanced driver assistance systems in passenger and commercial vehicles; its self-developed 3D+AI intelligent depth camera "Feynman" directly benchmarks international first-tier depth perception technology and has been adopted in volume by leading robotics customers' products. (For full coverage, see [NextVPU]: "NextVPU Raises Multi-Hundred-Million-RMB Series C, ICBC Capital Leads")
▲ Image source: Tsinghua University Department of Chemical Engineering
Synthetic biology startup Yanwei Technology has completed a RMB 50 million angel round, co-led by FreeS Fund and HSG, with participation from Shuimu Venture Capital and Kangyu Capital.
**/ What the Investors Say / **
Congratulations to Yanwei Technology on completing its RMB 50 million angel round. The Yanwei team brings 20 years of accumulated expertise in green biosynthesis of chemicals. Centered on catalysis, the company designs and optimizes whole-cell catalysts, enzyme molecules, and single-atom metal catalysts, building comprehensive biocatalytic and chemocatalytic capabilities that form a distinctive technical moat. In creating highly efficient cell factories, the company works with multiple industrial microbial chassis strains and has developed numerous products.
The founding team hails from Tsinghua's Department of Chemical Engineering — a rising star among synthetic biology startups. That's why FreeS Fund decided to invest from the very first meeting. Over the months since, the team has demonstrated scientific sophistication, industrial depth, and exceptional execution. We look forward to seeing the company deliver on its promise through action, achieve leapfrog development, and realize its vision: "the way of the infinitesimal, transforming all things."
**/ Company Details / **
**Yanwei Technology leverages patented technology from Tsinghua University to enable green bio-manufacturing of specialty chemicals, serving applications in agriculture, oilfields, consumer products, and pharmaceuticals. Its portfolio spans high-stress-tolerant biocatalysts, bio-templated nano and single-atom metal catalysts, and high-value specialty chemicals, with some products at industry-leading technical levels. Beyond its complete and uniquely advantaged R&D capabilities in synthetic biology and green chemical technology, Yanwei Technology also possesses solid expertise and practical experience in engineering scale-up and commercialization of new products. Two product categories are already production-ready, and the company is currently conducting joint application testing with leading customers across multiple sectors. (For full coverage, see [SynBio]: "Yanwei Technology Raises RMB 50 Million in First Round, Co-Led by FreeS Fund and HSG")
▲ Image source: Duanshiliangjin
Chinese original luxury brand Duanshiliangjin has announced the completion of an A+ round investment. The round was co-invested by FirstLight Capital and Xiaohongshu, with existing shareholders including FreeS Fund continuing to increase their stakes.
▲ Click to watch the original FreeS Fund video. Could China birth its own luxury brands? We reviewed the history of how Western houses built their empires, and explored the soil and opportunities for China to create luxury brands of its own. Please share, like, and recommend~
▲ Click to watch the original FreeS Fund video. Where lies the path for Chinese本土奢侈品牌的突围之路在哪里，如何从传统文化与现代精神风貌里获得灵感？欢迎一起探讨，感谢转发点赞推荐~
**/ What the Investors Say / **
The heights that Chinese civilization once reached in aesthetics may be beyond the imagination of many contemporary Chinese people. I have always believed that the value of Chinese aesthetics lies in excavating and recreating classics from history, rather than merely copying contemporary Western fashion. Therefore, finding a brand like Duanshiliangjin that delves deep into the wellsprings of Chinese civilization is a source of genuine delight.
From the demand side, as China's economy has developed, Chinese consumers already account for roughly one-third of global luxury consumption. But on the supply side, the global luxury industry is almost entirely monopolized by Western luxury groups. For Chinese brands to break through requires not only courage, but also capability and timing.
Whether in aesthetic construction, product craftsmanship, or brand positioning, Duanshiliangjin has developed into a highly promising representative of Chinese hard luxury. Beyond its existing Beijing and Shanghai stores, the brand defiantly opened a Nanjing Deji Plaza location this year despite repeated pandemic disruptions — and has delivered strong performance. As early investors in the project, we will continue to support Duanshiliangjin and the development of Chinese original brands in the luxury sector. (For more, read FreeS Report 21: Searching for China's Classics and Fashion — A Study on Guochao Consumption | FreeS Research Institute)
▲ Duanshiliangjin Nanjing Deji Plaza store. Image source: Duanshiliangjin
**/ Company Details / **
**Duanshiliangjin founder Qi Tian was born in Beijing and developed a lifelong fascination with traditional Chinese culture from an early age. He holds a bachelor's degree in architecture from Tsinghua University's Department of Architecture and a master's degree in architecture from the University of Pennsylvania. In 2011, Qi founded Duanshiliangjin — a name meaning "upright wood and fine brocade," the two most fundamental materials for constructing a box: wood and brocade, exterior and interior, hard and soft. Through these two materials, Qi hoped to convey to the world the "uprightness" and "excellence" of classical China. In 2018, Duanshiliangjin added brocade, leather, and other elements to its bags, launching approximately 100 SKUs, of which the Flying Bird Tang Flower Mirror achieved the most striking market performance with over 10,000 units sold. Duanshiliangjin shifted its commercial focus to offline retail, opening its first store in Beijing's 798 Art District that integrated retail, exhibition, experience, exchange, reception, and office functions. Subsequently, the brand opened locations at Beijing's Wangfu Central and China World Mall, Shanghai's Grand Gateway 66 on the first floor, and Nanjing Deji Plaza. (For full coverage, see [36Kr]: "With Xiaohongshu Investment, 11-Year-Old 'Duanshiliangjin' Aims to Become a High-End Brand Representing Chinese Classical Aesthetics")
▲ Image source: Funmangic
Game content development company Funmangic has recently completed an angel round of tens of millions of RMB, with FreeS Fund as the investor.
**/ What the Investors Say / **
**Funmangic is dedicated to creating a new experience of "from everyone watching to everyone playing" for the next generation of young global users, building a gamified content social platform centered on online stories. This vision aligns perfectly with FreeS Fund's understanding and imagination of the metaverse and next-generation social.
We believe every generation has its own defining spiritual keywords. As new-generation young users seek presence and self-expression, a new wave of companies will emerge to create novel products and experiences that meet these needs. Funmangic's founders and team come from top-tier gaming and internet social/content companies. They possess deep understanding and keen instincts for exploring social interaction through gamification. We look forward to seeing them reach their goals and bring fresh, immersive new experiences to young users worldwide.
FreeS Fund will also collaborate with Funmangic and other outstanding teams in this space to continue exploring how to create new products and experiences that better serve the emerging needs of young users.
**/ Company Details / **
**Founded in 2022, Funmangic's namesake product is a role-playing game-based social platform that allows players to assume multiple virtual characters, experiencing content social gameplay through playing and watching live gameplay streams, while building social connections through entertainment.
The platform also allows players to publish their own created story-based gameplay for others to experience, playtest, and stream live, providing users with rich and diverse content social entertainment options. The product will initially launch as a mobile app, with plans to later release on PC, Steam, PlayStation, and Xbox platforms. (For full coverage, see [36Kr]: "Funmangic Raises Angel Round from FreeS Fund to Build Open-World Gamified Content Platform")
▲ Image source: VB Data
Qunmai Medical has completed a Pre-A round of financing worth tens of millions of RMB, led by Naton Technology Group with follow-on investment from FreeS Fund.
**/ What the Investors Say / **
Brain science is hailed as the "final frontier" of human technology. The complexity of the human brain system, the importance of brain cognition data, and the scarcity of brain observation and clinical diagnostic tools make the brain science track vast, profound, and intricate.
The next-generation quantum magnetoencephalography (MEG) system developed by Qunmai Medical combines whole-brain coverage, non-invasiveness, high spatiotemporal resolution, and low maintenance costs — representing the next generation of neuroimaging technology for observing neuronal activity and parsing brain function and disease.
Qunmai's founding team comes from Peking University, with deep expertise and academic influence in brain imaging fields including magnetoencephalography. In just over three years since its founding, the company has leveraged its proprietary core technology to develop mass-producible high-sensitivity magnetic sensors and complete China's first installation of a novel quantum MEG system for research use.
We are honored to participate in this round of financing for Qunmai and will continue to support the company. We look forward to MEG becoming critical infrastructure for cognitive science and a key tool for brain disease assessment and diagnosis. Comprehensive, system-level brain cognition data will open up more possibilities for brain-machine integration.
**/ Company Details / **
Founded in 2019, Qunmai Medical is a technology innovation enterprise that Beijing has prioritized attracting in the healthcare sector. The company currently focuses on developing proprietary high-end bio-weak magnetic imaging equipment for brain science and brain disease applications. Its core product is a next-generation quantum MEG system, which has already achieved domestic sales and research installations. The company's clinical MEG product for medical applications has entered the registration application phase, and this round of financing will accelerate the approval process, with registration and scaled clinical sales expected by 2023. (For full coverage, see [VB Data]: "Filling the Domestic Gap in Brain Magnetic Imaging, Qunmai Medical Raises Tens of Millions in Pre-A Round")
▲ Image source: Xingzhixing Robot
Intelligent special-purpose robot company Xingzhixing Robot has completed its Series A financing round, led by domestic institution Legend Capital with follow-on investments from CAS Star and Zhiyuan Capital, while existing shareholder Qianhai Equity Investment FOF continued to increase its stake.
**/ What the Investors Say / **
Congratulations to Xingzhixing Robot on completing its Series A financing. This round will help the company continue to increase R&D investment in its wall-climbing special-purpose robot series and accelerate the domestic and international market deployment of its products across shipbuilding, petrochemical, and wind power applications.
Xingzhixing Robot was founded in 2017, and FreeS Fund led its angel round that same year. The founding team comes from the robotics research group at the Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, with deep accumulated expertise and practical experience in wall-climbing robot locomotion, control, vision, cleaning execution, and curved-surface motion planning. After years of development, Xingzhixing's wall-climbing robot products now provide integrated solutions for rust removal, cleaning, spraying, and grinding on large steel structures across the shipbuilding, petrochemical, and wind power industries.
These industries have long faced numerous high-risk, high-altitude, and underwater operation scenarios. Xingzhixing Robot has spent years quietly developing and iterating products to address core scene-specific needs. In the current environment of declining labor supply, Xingzhixing helps these special operation scenarios achieve machine substitution, delivering more efficient and environmentally friendly solutions based on autonomously controllable core technologies.
We appreciate Xingzhixing's commercialization approach of persistently productizing technology to solve scene-specific pain points, as well as the team's solid and grounded technical foundation. We look forward to the company continuing to mine industry needs, iterate products, and grow from a pioneer in the special-purpose robot industry to become its leader.
Company Details
Xingzhixing Robot was founded in 2017 and has grown into an enterprise providing intelligent special-purpose robots and green integrated solutions for multiple scenarios including rust removal, cleaning, spraying, grinding, and inspection on large steel structure facades. Its robot products have been widely applied in shipbuilding, petrochemicals, wind power, and other industries.
The founding team originates from the robotics expert team at the Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences. The founder is a CAS Key Technology Talent, chief scientist of national key R&D programs under the Ministry of Science and Technology, doctoral supervisor, and professor-level senior engineer, with deep experience in both technology R&D and operations management. With the original aspiration of filling gaps in the domestic special-purpose robot sector, the company has obtained nearly a hundred patents and software copyrights in core wall-climbing robot technologies, intelligent control algorithms, controllers, ultra-high-pressure water jet technology, machine vision, and other fields. (For full coverage, see [Cyzone]: "Xingzhixing Robot Completes Series A Financing, Legend Capital Leads")
Interactive Giveaway
This article contains two short videos exploring the soil from which Western luxury brands emerged, and how Chinese culture influences domestic trend brands. We welcome you to share your insights on Chinese culture and the consumer market in the comments below. The 6 most thoughtful commenters will receive a canvas bag designed by Duanshu Liangjin.
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