Qiming Weekly | Top 10 News from Qiming Venture Partners Portfolio Companies Vol.25, 2026.8.11
Following Qiming Venture Partners' portfolio companies as they hit milestone moments.
Editor's Note: In 2026, the Qiming Weekly has been upgraded and refreshed, with regular weekly updates featuring only ten major developments from Qiming Venture Partners' portfolio companies, covering financing progress and breakthroughs.
In the wave of technology and innovation, every step entrepreneurs take deserves to be recorded. Qiming Venture Partners will continue to accelerate and empower entrepreneurs, and join you in marking the milestone moments of our portfolio companies.
Financing News
Aureka Biotechnologies Closes $100 Million Series B
Recently, Qiming Venture Partners portfolio company Aureka Biotechnologies announced the completion of a $100 million Series B financing round. This round was completed in tranches, with Qiming Venture Partners continuing to participate in subsequent Series B closings. To date, Aureka Biotechnologies has raised nearly $200 million in total funding. The proceeds will be primarily directed toward the R&D and large-scale training of next-generation biological foundation models, continuously enhancing model capabilities in core tasks such as de novo molecular design, biological structure modeling, and functional prediction. At the same time, the company will further upgrade its Lab-in-the-Loop system centered on experimental feedback mechanisms, driving deep integration between foundation models and proprietary single-cell functional screening, high-throughput experimental validation, and drug development platforms.
Previously, Aureka Biotechnologies completed its closed-loop AI-native infrastructure. Moving forward, it will strengthen the foundation model as the "intelligent core" of this entire system: by combining large-scale pre-training, project-customized post-training, AI agents, and scalable experimental systems, it aims to build AI for Science infrastructure for the life sciences, enabling models to not only solve individual drug discovery tasks but also continuously learn biological principles and understand, generate, predict, and intervene in complex biological systems. As foundation models and automated R&D infrastructure accelerate their convergence, Aureka Biotechnologies will evolve from "using AI to improve drug discovery efficiency" toward "using AI to model living systems," continuously expanding the technological frontier and industrial ceiling of AI-driven drug discovery.
Dr. Weian Zhao, Founder and CEO of Aureka Biotechnologies, stated: "When leading biological foundation models are truly combined with scalable R&D infrastructure, we are no longer just improving efficiency in one segment of drug discovery — we are building the next-generation drug discovery engine capable of understanding, generating, and predicting biological systems. This is also a critical step for Aureka Biotechnologies toward biological world models."
Major Partnerships
01/ Gan & Lee Pharmaceuticals Partners with Menarini for European Market Entry
Recently, Qiming Venture Partners portfolio company Gan & Lee Pharmaceuticals (603087.SH) announced that it has signed an exclusive licensing agreement with multinational biopharmaceutical company Menarini Group ("Menarini"). The two parties will collaborate on the registration and commercialization of Gan & Lee's self-developed glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist (GLP-1RA) biweekly formulation — Bofanglutide Injection (development code: GZR18) — for the treatment of adult obesity or overweight patients, with a dosing frequency of once every two weeks.
Under the agreement, Gan & Lee Pharmaceuticals will receive a €62 million upfront payment, potential milestone payments totaling €664 million, and tiered royalties based on net product sales in the licensed territories at double-digit percentages. The total potential transaction value reaches up to €726 million (excluding royalties).
Menarini will be responsible for the registration and commercialization of Bofanglutide across 39 European countries and regions, including the 27 EU member states, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein, and the Balkans. This partnership marks the fourth overseas licensing deal for Bofanglutide's global registration and commercialization, following agreements with local pharmaceutical companies in Latin America, India, and South Korea, and represents the highest-potential-value out-licensing transaction for this product to date.
02/ Axera Semiconductor Partners with QNX on Intelligent Driving Solutions Platform
Recently, Qiming Venture Partners portfolio company and global leading AI inference SoC solutions provider Axera Semiconductor (00600.HK) and QNX, a business unit of BlackBerry Limited, announced the joint launch of a production-ready intelligent assisted driving solutions platform.
The platform is built on Axera's latest M57 series chips and the QNX® safety operating system, combining QNX's safety-certified software with Axera's high-performance AI inference chips. It has already secured design wins from multiple domestic automakers and is expected to achieve commercialization and mass production within the year.
Building on this successful collaboration, QNX also plans to launch a QNX SDP 8.0 version supporting Axera's flagship high-performance intelligent driving SoC. Through coordinated planning of software and chip roadmaps, the two parties aim to lay a scalable technical foundation for next-stage mid-to-high-level intelligent driving and cockpit-driving integration solutions, driving greater breakthroughs in global automotive intelligence capabilities.
03/ WeRide Launches Denmark's First Commercial Autonomous Ride-Hailing Project
Recently, Qiming Venture Partners portfolio company and global leading autonomous driving technology company WeRide (NASDAQ: WRD, 00800.HK) and Danish shared electric mobility platform GreenMobility announced a strategic partnership to jointly create Denmark's first commercial autonomous ride-hailing project. This marks WeRide's entry into the Nordic market for the first time, making it the first Chinese Robotaxi company to establish a presence in the Nordics.
Subject to relevant regulatory approvals, the two parties plan to launch commercial autonomous ride-hailing services to the public in the first half of 2027. At that time, local passengers will be able to experience WeRide's latest-generation L4 Robotaxi GXR, which complies with EU regulations.
Denmark is the sixth European country WeRide has entered. Following the June 2026 announcement of commercial Robotaxi services in Madrid, Spain and Zurich, Switzerland, WeRide is now bringing its Robotaxi to Denmark. Within just over two months, the company has successively advanced public-facing commercial projects in three European markets, entering a new phase of multi-market parallel deployment and tiered progression in European Robotaxi commercialization.
Product Launches
01/ Speediance Unveils Screen-Free Fitness Band Speediance Strap
Recently, Qiming Venture Partners portfolio company Speediance officially launched its first wearable product, the Speediance Strap screen-free fitness band. Breaking out of the equipment category, Speediance has built this portable monitoring device around the core philosophy of "no screen, no sensation, no distraction," focusing on multi-dimensional physiological data collection including training, sleep, and core body temperature, paired with its Wellness+ health platform to provide training and recovery guidance.
Speediance believes that today's smart devices are constantly fragmenting user attention with notifications and screen interactions, while true exercise and health monitoring should help users focus on their bodies rather than the device. Therefore, this band completely eliminates the screen, retaining only basic status indicator lights, and achieves "imperceptible presence" through lightweight wear, returning user attention to movement and bodily awareness. Functionally, the band focuses on two core directions: exercise and health. It can recognize multiple exercise types, track training modes, exercise volume, and speed trends, while monitoring sleep quality, core body temperature, and other physiological indicators. Once synced to the Speediance Wellness+ platform, it generates personalized training and recovery recommendations. As part of the fitness ecosystem, it can also connect with Speediance's strength training equipment to supplement body metrics that equipment cannot capture, forming a more complete training data loop.
02/ Unisound Launches Enterprise AI Operations Platform
Recently, Qiming Venture Partners portfolio company Unisound (09678.HK) officially launched its Enterprise AI Operations Platform — built on an AI gateway foundation, deeply integrating capability management, intelligent scheduling, security governance, and operations analytics to help enterprises build efficient, secure, and sustainable AI implementation systems.
The Unisound Enterprise AI Operations Platform upgrades scheduling capabilities to intelligent routing. The system dynamically analyzes each request by comprehensively evaluating task complexity, model performance, real-time latency, call cost, and business priority, automatically matching the most suitable model and execution path. The goal is not simply to pursue the "strongest" or "cheapest" option, but to find a dynamic balance between business outcomes, response efficiency, and resource consumption. At the same time, the platform incorporates high-availability and load-balancing mechanisms, monitoring the health status, latency, and load of each model node in real time. Upon detecting service anomalies or failures, it automatically completes traffic switching, rapidly activating backup models or degradation strategies to minimize the impact of model fluctuations on business continuity.
R&D Progress
01/
AusperBio Announces First Patient Dosed in AHB-171 HBV Clinical Study
Recently, Qiming Venture Partners portfolio company AusperBio announced that its self-developed investigational hepatocyte-targeted small interfering RNA (siRNA) therapeutic candidate AHB-171 has completed first-patient dosing in a clinical study for chronic hepatitis B. This milestone marks the second therapeutic candidate to enter clinical development following AusperBio's first clinical-stage product AHB-137, and also the first candidate developed on the company's proprietary Au-HALO™ liver-targeted delivery technology platform to reach the clinic. Following AHB-137, AHB-171 further expands AusperBio's innovative product pipeline targeting hepatitis B virus (HBV) and enriches the company's next-generation oligonucleotide therapeutics portfolio.
Dr. Guofeng Cheng, Co-founder and CEO of AusperBio: "The first-patient dosing of AHB-171 is an important milestone in AusperBio's development journey, demonstrating the company's R&D capability to translate its proprietary technology platforms into clinical-stage candidates. AHB-171 further expands our product footprint in the HBV field, building upon our existing ASO AHB-137 program and enriching our strategic layout for developing next-generation oligonucleotide therapeutics based on different mechanisms of action. We believe this complementary mechanism-based innovative therapeutic strategy holds promise for bringing new possibilities to clinical cure of chronic hepatitis B. We thank the patients, investigators, and research teams participating in this study — their support and collaboration have collectively made this important milestone possible."
02/
CANbridge Pharmaceuticals Announces HUNTERASE® Approval in Taiwan, China for MPS II Treatment
Recently, Qiming Venture Partners portfolio company CANbridge Pharmaceuticals (01228.HK) announced that HUNTERASE®, for the treatment of mucopolysaccharidosis type II (MPS II, also known as Hunter syndrome), has received a drug marketing authorization from the Taiwan Food and Drug Administration (TFDA). Previously, HUNTERASE® had already been approved for marketing in mainland China and Hong Kong.
Dr. Xue Qun, Founder, Chairman and CEO of CANbridge Pharmaceuticals: "Taiwan, China has a considerable MPS II patient population, with mature and advanced practical experience in early disease screening, patient support, and drug access. The approval of HUNTERASE® in Taiwan will accelerate CANbridge's progress in providing treatment to all MPS II patients across Greater China. We will work with the MPS II patient community in the region to ensure that all suitable patients can access this therapeutic drug as early as possible."
03/
Insilico Medicine Nominates Potential First-in-Class Target Y Inhibitor ISM9077 as Preclinical Candidate
Recently, Qiming Venture Partners portfolio company and clinical-stage generative AI-driven drug discovery company Insilico Medicine (03696.HK) announced the nomination of AI-enabled potential "first-in-class" Target Y inhibitor ISM9077 as a preclinical candidate (PCC) for the treatment of dry age-related macular degeneration (dry AMD), uveitis, dry eye disease, and other ophthalmic conditions. ISM9077 is the 32nd PCC nominated by Insilico Medicine since 2021, demonstrating potent cross-species inhibitory activity, excellent target tissue exposure and permeability, and favorable safety in preclinical experiments.
Furthermore, this molecule's innovative mechanism of action can effectively modulate pathological inflammatory responses, supporting its expansion into broader therapeutic areas. This encompasses not only complex aging biology processes closely associated with chronic inflammation, but also neurodegenerative diseases, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), cardiovascular disease, metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH), obesity, and other inflammation-related diseases.
04/
Ethiopian Ministry of Health Leads Launch of Poclight NPOC Tuberculosis Testing Solution
From August 4–7, 2026, the national launch and trainer-of-trainers program for NPOC tuberculosis diagnostic technology was held at the Ethiopian Public Health Institute Training Center in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. State Minister of Health Dr. Dereje Duguma attended and participated in the launch, working with Dr. Mesay Hailu and Dr. Hiwot Solomon Taffese to advance related efforts. Qiming Venture Partners portfolio company Poclight's tuberculosis testing solution (MiniDock MTB Test) thus entered Ethiopia's national early adoption and scale-up preparation phase.
Building on the national launch and trainer-of-trainers program, the project will subsequently expand installation scale, driving NPOC into more grassroots healthcare settings and gradually broadening the coverage of molecular testing services. For Poclight, this means the product will move from early adoption toward broader national program implementation. The Poclight tuberculosis testing solution effectively reduces per-test costs and improves overall diagnostic resource utilization efficiency — for national programs, the same budget can therefore cover more patients, balancing testing accessibility with cost control.
Past Issues
Qiming Weekly | Top 10 News from Qiming Venture Partners Portfolio Companies Vol. 24, 2026.8.4
Founded in 2006, Qiming Venture Partners currently manages 11 USD funds and 7 RMB funds, with total assets under management reaching $9.5 billion. Since its inception, the firm has focused on investing in early and growth-stage outstanding enterprises in Technology and Healthcare.
To date, Qiming Venture Partners has invested in over 580 high-growth innovative companies, of which more than 210 have listed on the New York Stock Exchange, NASDAQ, Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing, Shanghai Stock Exchange, and Shenzhen Stock Exchange, or exited through M&A and other means. Over 80 portfolio companies have become recognized unicorns or super-unicorns in their respective industries.
Many Qiming Venture Partners portfolio companies have grown into the most influential companies in their fields, including Xiaomi (01810.HK), Meituan (03690.HK), Bilibili (NASDAQ: BILI, 09626.HK), Zhihu (NYSE: ZH, 02390.HK), Roborock (688169.SH), Hesai Technology (NASDAQ: HSAI, 02525.HK), UBTECH (09880.HK), WeRide (NASDAQ: WRD, 00800.HK), HyperStrong (688411.SH), Insta360 (688775.SH), Unisound (09678.HK), Biren Technology (06082.HK), Zhipu AI (02513.HK), Gan & Lee Pharmaceuticals (603087.SH), Tigermed (300347.SZ, 03347.HK), Zai Lab (NASDAQ: ZLAB, 09688.HK), CanSino Biologics (688185.SH, 06185.HK), Schrödinger (NASDAQ: SDGR), MicroPort EP MedTech (688617.SH), Sanyou Medical (688085.SH), Amoy Diagnostics (300685.SZ), SinoCellTech (688520.SH), Insilico Medicine (03696.HK), AusperBio, Yuanxin Technology, MediLink Therapeutics, LaNova Medicines, StepFun, and others.