Embodied AI's Zhiyuan Robotics Acquires Shangwei New Material, Skips IPO

Zhiyuan Robotics, co-founded by "Zhihuijun," has acquired a controlling 63.62% stake in A-share STAR Market company Shangwei New Material for over 2.1 billion RMB. This strategic move grants the embodied AI robot company access to public capital markets without a traditional IPO, significantly altering the industry's development path and competitive landscape. The acquisition, led by Zhiyuan's actual controller Deng Taihua, leverages Shangwei New Material's listed status to accelerate Zhiyuan's growth and integration of industry resources.

Zhiyuan Robotics' Strategic Acquisition

• Zhiyuan Robotics gained a 63.62% controlling stake in Shangwei New Material (688585), an A-share STAR Market listed company.
• The acquisition involved a two-step process: first, purchasing 29.99% of core shareholder equity for 941 million RMB, followed by a tender offer for an additional 37% (effective 33.63%) for 1.16 billion RMB.
• Total investment for the controlling stake exceeded 2.1 billion RMB, enabling Zhiyuan to access public capital markets without a traditional IPO.
• Deng Taihua, Zhiyuan Robotics' Chairman and CEO (and former Huawei VP), has become the actual controller of Shangwei New Material.

Zhiyuan Robotics: Company Profile and Innovation

• Founded in February 2023, Zhiyuan Robotics is an embodied AI company co-founded by "Zhihuijun" (Peng Zhihui) and led by Deng Taihua.
• It boasts a valuation of 15 billion RMB as of May 2024, securing significant funding in a short period.
• The company develops a full-stack "body + AI" robotics technology, including core component R&D, integrated manufacturing, and self-trained embodied foundation models (e.g., Genie Operator-1 GO-1).
• Zhiyuan offers multiple robot series (Yuanzheng, Lingxi, Jingling) for various commercial scenarios and has made open-source contributions like the Lingxi X1 design and the AgiBot World dataset.

Key Figures and Talent Strategy

• "Zhihuijun" (Peng Zhihui): Co-founder and CTO, a renowned tech influencer and former Huawei "genius youth," known for viral robotics projects and Bilibili content.
• Deng Taihua: Chairman and CEO, former Huawei Vice President, now the actual controller of Zhiyuan Robotics and Shangwei New Material.
• Strategic Talent Acquisition: Zhiyuan has attracted top talent, including Yao Maoqing (ex-Waymo, Oracle, NIO) for AI product R&D and Luo Jianlan (ex-Google X, DeepMind) as Chief Scientist, enhancing its R&D capabilities.

Redefining Industry Access to Capital

• Zhiyuan's acquisition of a public company represents an unconventional "shortcut" to capital markets, diverging from the traditional path of building business closed-loops and then pursuing an IPO.
• This move contrasts with recent significant private funding rounds secured by other embodied AI companies like Unitree, Galaxy Universal, Xingdong Jiyuan, and Tashi Zhihang.
• The acquisition not only provides Zhiyuan with a public platform but also integrates its "embodied AI" concept with Shangwei New Material's previously unrelated business, potentially reshaping the embodied AI industry's capital landscape.