A Whole New World | Z News
We invite you to look back on the past month's "highlight reel" — a look at how our portfolio companies have grown and what's new at ZhenFund.
Z News is ZhenFund's news column.
As November draws to a close, we're looking back at the month's highlights and inviting you to witness the growth of our portfolio companies and the latest from ZhenFund. Double espresso — here's what we've got for you.
Shanghai Municipal Party Committee Standing Committee Member and Pudong New Area Party Secretary Li Zheng Visits ZhenFund Portfolio Company Synyi
On November 3, Li Zheng, member of the Shanghai Municipal Party Committee Standing Committee and Party Secretary of Pudong New Area, visited Synyi, a leading AI enterprise. Zhang Shaodian, founder and chairman of Synyi, gave a detailed briefing on the company's core technologies, innovative applications, and business development, with a focus on its progress in medical vertical large language models and overseas expansion.
Zhang Shaodian stated that Synyi will continue to drive innovation for the industry, exploring the deep integration of cutting-edge technology with healthcare, increasing R&D investment, and striving to deliver more innovative solutions for the medical sector. The company remains committed to its mission of "optimizing every medical decision," deepening its presence in healthcare, and actively contributing to high-quality socioeconomic development. Read more
Hefei Party Secretary Fei Gaoyun Visits ZhenFund Early-Stage Portfolio Company Youibot
Recently, during a tour to communicate the spirit of the 20th Central Committee's Fourth Plenary Session and conduct research in Shushan District, Yaohai District, and Feidong County, Hefei Party Secretary Fei Gaoyun visited Hefei Youibot Robotics Co., Ltd. Chairman Zhang Zhaohui accompanied the visit and presented a work report.
As a global pioneer and leader in industrial embodied intelligence, Youibot was among the first worldwide to explore embodied intelligence technology and achieve large-scale application, continuously driving industry innovation and development. The company focuses on mobile manipulation robots — the most growth-potential and scenario-adaptive segment of industrial embodied intelligence. Leveraging its "one brain, multiple forms" industrial embodied intelligence system, Youibot has built China's most diverse range of mobile manipulation robot hardware configurations, endowing robots with perception, decision-making, and interaction capabilities to perform complex operations in variable environments, supporting stable, flexible, and efficient productivity upgrades. Read more
ZhenFund Portfolio Company Hynertech Invited to Future Investment Initiative (FII) in Riyadh
From October 27–30, the 9th Future Investment Initiative (FII), known as the "Davos in the Desert," was held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. This year's summit gathered over 6,000 global leaders from more than 100 countries to discuss drivers of global economic transformation and future investment directions. Hynertech CEO Yao Changsheng was invited to attend, joining global industry leaders in dialogue about a sustainable energy future.
Founded in October 2017 by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz of Saudi Arabia, who also chairs the Public Investment Fund (PIF), the Future Investment Initiative operates under a strict membership-by-invitation system. It is open exclusively to heads of state, government officials, star entrepreneurs, top CEOs, investors, FII researchers, and strategic partners. Read more
ZhenFund Portfolio Company Beiqibiotech Chief Scientist Professor Deng Hongkui Elected to Chinese Academy of Sciences
On November 21, the 2025 election results for the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Chinese Academy of Engineering were officially announced. Deng Hongkui, Boya Chair Professor at Peking University, Director of the Peking University Stem Cell Research Center, and Chair of the Department of Cell Biology at Peking University School of Basic Medical Sciences, was elected to the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
Beijing Beiqibiotech focuses on developing globally innovative cell therapy drugs based on the chemical-induced pluripotent stem cell (CiPSC) technology platform, which originated from years of technical accumulation by Professor Deng Hongkui and his scientific team at Peking University. Read more
ZhenFund Portfolio Company Exalume Wins First Prize at China Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition (Guangdong Division) Finals
On December 1, the 14th China Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition (Guangdong Division) and the 13th "Pearl River Angel Cup" Science and Technology Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition concluded. Exalume won first prize in the growth enterprise group, ranking first in the fiercely competitive biomedical field category.
Li Xudong, Party Group Member and Deputy Director of the Guangdong Provincial Department of Science and Technology, personally presented Exalume with the first prize certificate for growth enterprises. At the core of this achievement is Exalume's self-developed micro gas chromatograph, a major breakthrough in breath testing technology. The device obtained China's first Class II innovative medical device registration certificate in the breath testing industry, becoming the world's first officially certified micro gas chromatograph for human exhaled volatile organic compound (VOC) analysis, and was selected for the national Disruptive Technology Innovation Key Special Program. Read more
ZhenFund Portfolio Company Enflame Technology Showcases at Global Open Source Technology Conference GOTC 2025, Accelerating AI Scenario-Based Deployment
On November 1, the Global Open Source Technology Conference (GOTC 2025) was held in Beijing, focusing on hot topics including Agentic AI, large model applications, AI + software engineering, and embodied intelligence, while exploring the future and development of open source.
As a key force in domestic AI computing innovation, Enflame Technology exhibited to promote deep integration between AI technology and the open source community, driving the construction and application of domestic computing ecosystems. During the conference, Enflame showcased its latest achievements in computing infrastructure, AI commercialization, and R&D exploration. Its third-generation product, the Enflame S60, released in 2024, has achieved large-scale commercial deployment with over 70,000 cards installed, supporting more than 300 application scenarios. Read more
ZhenFund Portfolio Company Chipsight Technology Showcases Quantum Dot Spectral Sensing Technology at 2025 World Internet of Things Exposition
From October 31 to November 2, the 2025 World Internet of Things Exposition, a premier global event in the IoT field, was held in Wuxi. As a national high-tech enterprise and a national-level "Little Giant" specialized and sophisticated enterprise, Chipsight (Beijing) Technology Co., Ltd. was invited to exhibit at the Smart Connectivity Pavilion, systematically presenting its globally leading quantum dot spectral sensing technology and innovative applications across multiple sectors to government leaders, industry experts, and enterprise representatives — bringing disruptive breakthroughs to the perception layer of the IoT.
With the theme "Intelligent Connectivity of Everything, Endless Frontiers," this year's exposition focused on the mutual empowerment of AI and IoT. At the venue, Chipsight's core quantum dot spectral sensing technology became a focal point. The technology originated from a groundbreaking 2015 paper published in Nature by the company's founder, Professor Bao Jie, a doctoral advisor at Tsinghua University. It ingeniously applies quantum dots — the material recognized by the 2023 Nobel Prize in Chemistry — to spectral sensing, breaking through the technical bottleneck of traditional spectrometers' reliance on interference-based dispersion. This innovation shrinks the bulky, expensive laboratory spectral analysis equipment down to a microchip the size of a smartphone camera. Read more
ZhenFund Portfolio Company MenuSifu Selected for Forbes China "Going Global 30 & 30" 2025
On November 4, Forbes China officially announced its annual "Going Global 30 & 30" list, with North American restaurant tech company MenuSifu making the cut and receiving the "Most Investment-Worthy Brand" designation.
MenuSifu's selection as a "successful model of vertical SaaS going global" reflects not only industry recognition of its growth potential and business model, but also the increasingly prominent strategic value of the Chinese restaurant overseas expansion track in the global business landscape. Currently, numerous Chinese restaurant brands have successfully entered the North American market with MenuSifu's digital capabilities, including Mixue Ice Cream & Tea, Happy Lamb, and Shuxia, covering multiple segments such as tea drinks, hot pot, snacks, and fast food. Read more
ZhenFund Early-Stage Portfolio Company Hesai Technology Selected for Forbes China "Going Global 30 & 30" 2025
On November 4, Forbes China officially announced its annual "Going Global 30 & 30" list, with Hesai Technology making the "Going Global Flagship Brands TOP 30" based on its outstanding globalization performance, becoming the only lidar company on this year's list.
As a global leader in lidar, Hesai Technology maintains offices in Silicon Valley and Stuttgart, Germany, with operations spanning over 40 countries. It is the preferred choice for top global OEMs and autonomous driving companies. According to a report by international authoritative research firm Yole Group, Hesai achieved three global firsts in 2024: global market share leader in automotive lidar, global market share leader in ADAS lidar, and global market share leader in L4 autonomous driving lidar. It is also the only company in the industry to have received "multiple global firsts" honors for four consecutive years. Read more
ZhenFund Portfolio Company ADVANCE.AI Wins Two Honors at 2025 Harvard Business Review Digital Transformation Awards
On October 31, the 8th "Digital Transformation Awards" ceremony for digital intelligence pioneers concluded in Beijing. ADVANCE.AI received the "Digital Intelligence Pioneer List — Digital Service Award" for its outstanding practices in digital identity verification and compliance risk management, its deep empowerment of global industrial digital-intelligence transformation, and its clear strategic leadership. Meanwhile, Shou Dong, co-founder of Advance Intelligence Group and chairman of ADVANCE.AI, was named "Enterprise Digital Intelligence Leader of the Year." Advance Intelligence Group also won the "Digital Intelligence Pioneer List — Technology Efficiency Award" for its outstanding achievements in full-chain generative AI (GenAI) implementation. The three awards collectively demonstrate the group's and ADVANCE.AI's all-around competitiveness in technological innovation, scenario-based practice, and strategic leadership. Read more
ZhenFund Portfolio Company Cardinal Operations Named to TMTPost 2025 Innovative Scenarios "Annual AI Application TOP List"
Recently, the 2025 Science and Technology Innovation and Industrial Innovation Integration Development Conference, themed "Technological innovation drives industrial upgrading, industrial demand promotes technological innovation," concluded in Nanchang. Cardinal Operations, a leading enterprise in AI intelligent decision-making, was invited to participate in the conference's "Strengthening Enterprises as Innovation Subjects" thematic event, showcasing its cutting-edge achievements in empowering industrial intelligent upgrading. Guo Yuhui, Cardinal Operations' pre-sales solutions director, stated that the company builds intelligent decision-making solutions across energy and power, aerospace, industrial manufacturing, retail and consumer goods, and other industries, powered by its self-developed solver COPT as the core engine — helping hundreds of leading enterprises achieve scheduling optimization, efficiency improvement, and lean cost control, fully demonstrating the core value and independent controllability of domestic intelligent decision-making technology in key domains. Read more
ZhenFund Early-Stage Portfolio Company Acceleratech Appears at 27th China Hi-Tech Fair
On November 14, the 27th China Hi-Tech Fair (CHTF) opened in Shenzhen. Over 5,000 renowned enterprises and international organizations from more than 100 countries and regions exhibited and participated, with over 5,000 cutting-edge new products and technologies unveiled. The three-day event is expected to attract 450,000 professional visitors. This year's CHTF featured a provincial and municipal science and technology achievement exhibition area, providing a high-level platform for regional innovation forces nationwide. Acceleratech, a leading enterprise in semiconductor testing, appeared at the Zhejiang Yuhang exhibition area with its self-developed high-performance testing equipment, becoming one of the notable innovative forces at the fair. Read more
ZhenFund Portfolio Company Exalume Named to Fortune's 23 Health-Related Companies to Watch
Recently, international authoritative business media Fortune magazine, in partnership with Well Equity Partners, released the 2025 Fortune list of 23 health-related companies to watch, selecting 23 health-related enterprises globally worthy of focused attention. Exalume (Guangzhou) Intelligent Technology Co., Ltd. was selected as a representative of Chinese domestic disruptive technology innovation in the health sector, becoming one of only 10 startups on the list. Read more
ZhenFund Portfolio Company Horizon Robotics Featured in Multiple Partner Vehicle Models at Guangzhou Auto Show
On November 21, the Fengyun T9L and iCAR V27, equipped with Horizon Robotics HSD, appeared at the Guangzhou Auto Show. China's auto industry is accelerating from EV leadership to a decisive battle in intelligent driving, with autonomous driving development entering "deep waters." At this critical juncture, Horizon Robotics' HSD urban assisted driving system has officially entered a new phase of scaled mass production. To date, HSD has secured design wins from 10 domestic and international OEM brands for over 20 vehicle models. As scaled vehicle deployment begins, Horizon Robotics will serve as a more efficient, more cost-effective third-party "standardized solution" platform, helping partner OEMs achieve upward leaps in intelligent driving and accelerating the democratization of urban assisted driving. Read more
ZhenFund Named to First New Voice "China's Most Active Early-Stage Investment Institutions TOP 30" and Multiple Other Lists
On October 29, First New Voice released its Q3 2025 China's Most Active Institutions series of lists, with ZhenFund ranking 5th on "China's Most Active Early-Stage Investment Institutions TOP 30," as well as making "Most Active Investment Institutions in AI TOP 10" and "Most Active Investment Institutions in Consumer TOP 5."
ZhenFund Named to "WAVE 2025 Annual Outstanding Investment Institution" List
On November 20, Xia Guang Society & Xia Guang Think Tank, in partnership with Alibaba Cloud, released the WAVE 2025 Pan-Internet Global Navigator Annual List, with ZhenFund making the "WAVE 2025 Annual Outstanding Investment Institution" list.
Text | Menmen
Editor | Cindy
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