Shenzhen Weiling Medical Completes Tens of Millions RMB Angel Financing to Advance World-Leading Minimally Invasive Fully Implanted Brain-Computer Interface Technology

VCBeat learned第一时间 that the leading enterprise in brain-computer intelligent fusion technologyWE-LINKING Medical Equipment Co., Ltd.(Hereinafter referred to as:WE-LINKINGTherapy）Announcement CompletedTens of Millions of Angel RoundFinancing, by a well-known domestic investment institutionBlueRun Ventures ChinaAndCDH InvestmentsCo-led byNaton Technology GroupInitiated by GuokrFuture Light ConeIncluding follow-up investments.

Mind-Brain Connection, Thought-Action Boundless

WE-LINKING was founded in April 2019 and is mainly engaged inDevelopment of Medical-Grade Fully Implantable Wireless Brain-Computer Interface System, is an internationally leading company that has mastered the full range of independent technologies for implantable brain-computer interfaces. Currently, the company hasShenzhenEstablish headquarters and R&D centers, respectively, inBeijing, SuzhouEstablish a clinical research and data center inMaryland, USAEstablish a North American branch.

The so-called implantable brain-computer interface enables direct information interaction between the brain and a computer through neural interface technology. Relying on the principles of the brain's neuroplasticity and functional distribution, it allows the brain to learn to control external electronic devices at will.

To date, WE-LINKING has developed relatively mature technologies in the foundational components such as high-density ultra-flexible neural sensor arrays and integrated closed-loop neural electronic chips for signal acquisition and stimulation. At the core module level of brain-computer fusion, they have also made significant progress in thousands of channel-grade miniaturized brain-computer information interaction devices, wireless brain information transceivers, high-throughput real-time neural signal parsing and transcoding devices, and brain-inspired intelligent computing and control systems. At the system platform level, the team has fully established a preclinical research paradigm and functional evaluation system for implantable brain-computer interfaces based on non-human primates. They have successfully completed implant surgeries on multiple brain-computer interface macaques and are currently conducting brain-computer intelligent fusion training experiments.

"The whole process is like learning to ride a bicycle and swim." According to Dr. Li Xiaojiang, founder of WE-LINKING, the rapid development and swift application of artificial intelligence technology have also significantly enhanced computers' ability to learn and understand brain information. In recent years, advancements in the above technologies have made brain-computer intelligent fusion technology increasingly mature, greatly promoting multiple successful explorations of brain-computer interface technology in clinical applications.

Against this backdrop, WE-LINKING hopes to take medical device requirements as the design orientation, guide the specific design of brain-computer systems with clinical needs, and focus on steadily delivering system-level products to clinical applications within a few years. The core mission is to benefit patients as soon as possible, adhering to this as the application principle, promoting the clinical transformation of brain-computer interface technology while emphasizing the implementation of application scenarios.

To this end, the company plans to focus on the design of clinical solutions, engineering implementation, and clinical practice for fully implantable motor brain-computer interface systems, hoping to prioritize serving patients with motor disabilities (such as stroke, spinal cord injury, ALS, etc.), achieving motor function replacement and rehabilitation.

According to Dr. Li Xiaojian, based on the maturity of the technology and the approval cycle for medical device products, WE-LINKING proposed"Three-step" Plan.

• Step 1,PromotionWithin about three years, promote the high-density, ultra-compliant neural electrode array based on MEMS technology and its supporting system to clinical use, providing doctors with better tools to map more detailed brain function "maps," improving the efficiency and precision of surgical planning.

• Step Two,ChangeWithin about 5 years, promote the use of fully implantable brain-computer interface systems in patients with motor disabilities to enhance their motor control and self-care abilities;

• Step Three,DisruptionWithin 8 to 10 years, expand the treatment platform based on implantable brain-computer interfaces into the diagnosis and treatment of mental health disorders, revolutionizing the current state of diagnosing and treating mental illnesses and other major brain-related conditions, making mental illnesses precisely controllable and even curable.

WE-LINKING's confidence in the brain-computer interface field stems from its internationally leading team composition.

Currently, the WE-LINKING team has over two decades of international research experience in the foundational studies, engineering practices, and clinical medicine fields of implantable brain-computer interfaces, with a profound understanding of the principles and clinical applications of brain-computer interfaces.

Extensive and diverse research and work experience have helped the company address a series of scientific, technological, engineering, and management issues encountered in the R&D and commercialization of implantable brain-computer interfaces. These include the operational principles of brain-machine fusion, design principles and engineering implementation of brain-computer interfaces, engineering R&D, clinical research, and commercialization pathways for medical device-grade brain-computer interface systems—knowledge that similar startups often lack.

Led this round of financingRong Jing, Managing Director of BlueRun Ventures ChinaCommented: "Brain-computer interface is a complex, multi-disciplinary engineering project that requires capabilities spanning from scientific innovation to engineering innovation. The WE-LINKING team is currently an international leader in mastering the full range of independent technologies for minimally invasive implantable brain-computer interfaces, representing a technological team at the forefront of brain-computer interface technology. We are very pleased as the lead investor to support such a team with original innovative capabilities, and we will continue to pay attention to the progress of applications in the fields of brain-computer interfaces and neurobiology for medical purposes."

Currently, the WE-LINKING team includesSenior researchers from leading institutions in the United States with strong brain-computer interface research capabilities, including Northwestern University, Brown University, Duke University, University of Pittsburgh, the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Taking Dr. Li Xiaojian as an example, after returning to China in the autumn of 2018, he established the Brain-Computer Intelligence Fusion Technology Laboratory at the Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology (SIAT), Chinese Academy of Sciences. Relying on the comprehensive industrial R&D platform of SIAT, he was the first in China to establish an independent technology chain for implantable brain-computer interface systems. He has also published multiple brain-computer interface papers in top international journals, with all related experimental data completed using equipment independently developed by his team.

WE-LINKING's research team has consistently maintained an active spirit of exploration in the frontier technology field of brain-computer interfaces, building a technical reserve for future advancements in brain-computer interface products. Current achievements include the study of nano-enhanced technology for neural signal sensing, which improves the performance of polymer sensors in detecting neural signals while ensuring a more robust structure and longer service life. In September 2022, in collaboration with their partner team, they unveiled a novel opto-nanoneural remote control technology (published in a Nature sub-journal on September 5, 2022), enabling the miniaturization of brain-computer interface devices, flexible and precise implantation, controllable service life, and wireless information interaction. This cutting-edge brain-computer interface technology in the field of neurorehabilitation, pioneered and continuously led by Chinese scholars, is gradually moving from the laboratory to clinical applications.

Dr. Liu Dan, Senior Partner of CDH InvestmentsStated: "We are very pleased to lead the angel round of financing for WE-LINKING. We have been deeply engaged in the brain-computer interface field for a long time, and numerous tracking studies show that the WE-LINKING team is a senior team with full-stack brain-computer interface technology recognized by international peers and is one of the few such teams globally. The founding team of the company has deep and diverse technical accumulation and industry resources, serving as the chairman of the Basic Hardware Working Group of the China Brain-Computer Interface Industry Alliance. We firmly believe in the rapid development of the company's minimally invasive implantable brain-computer interface products and look forward to the early application of the company’s technology in the medical field, benefiting society."

"The road ahead is long and fraught with challenges, but we will reach our destination if we keep moving forward; by persisting without pause, the future holds promise. WE-LINKING hopes to collaborate with outstanding peers across the brain-computer interface industry chain to accelerate technological research and development as well as product implementation, striving together to serve disabled patients sooner, enhance their self-care abilities, and uphold the dignity of life," said Dr. Li Xiao Jian.

Dr. Li XiaojianDr. Xiaojian Li is currently a senior engineer and doctoral supervisor at the Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, and the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Institute of Brain Science Innovation. He serves as an expert in the working group of the International Standardization Subcommittee on Brain-Computer Interfaces, a member of the China Brain-Computer Interface Standardization Expert Group, an advisory expert for implantable brain-computer interface devices at the Center for Medical Device Evaluation of the National Medical Products Administration, and the chairman of the Basic Hardware Group of the China Brain-Computer Interface Industry Alliance. Dr. Li graduated from the Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences. From 2010 to 2018, he conducted research on implantable brain-computer interface technologies for visual and motor systems at the Medical College of Georgia and Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine in the United States. His main research areas in brain-computer interfaces include high-throughput acquisition technology for dynamic neural information, neural circuit analysis and decoding technology, and new neuro-modulation techniques. His landmark achievements include being the first in China to establish a full-stack technology chain for implantable brain-computer interfaces and pioneering the development and continuous leadership of non-genetic neural remote control methods based on optical nanotechnology on the international stage. Dr. Li has a solid and comprehensive R&D foundation in precision mechanical engineering, optical engineering, electronic engineering, and neural engineering, excelling in interdisciplinary research. His numerous research works have been published in Nature sub-journals and top-tier professional journals across various disciplines. Due to his deep understanding and comprehensive scientific achievements in implantable brain-computer interface systems, Dr. Li is frequently invited by academic groups and technology media to deliver extensive academic and popular science lectures on brain-computer interfaces.

Co-founder Dr. Chungshan DengDr. Chunshan Deng is currently a senior engineer at the Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, and the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Institute of Brain Science, as well as a master's supervisor. He serves as an expert reviewer for the urgently needed imported drugs and medical devices from Hong Kong and Macao for clinical use in the Greater Bay Area of mainland China. Dr. Deng graduated with a Ph.D. from the Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences. From 2011 to 2016, he conducted postdoctoral research at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in the United States. Afterward, he joined the neurology department of a large tertiary hospital in China to engage in international multicenter clinical research. Dr. Deng's research focuses on the working mechanisms of higher brain functions and innovative clinical diagnosis and treatment methods for major brain diseases. He has extensive research experience in clinical biomarkers for the diagnosis and treatment of mental illnesses, particularly depression. Dr. Deng has long served as the president of the NIH Chinese Scholars Association, organizing numerous exchange activities between Chinese researchers in the Greater Washington area, including those from the FDA and NIST, and various pharmaceutical and medical device companies. He also served as the executive manager of Shenzhen’s major scientific and technological infrastructure project in brain science.

Co-founder Dr. Su TaoDr. Su Tao, representative of the company's management, graduated from the Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences. Dr. Su has engaged in many years of research and development and management work at a top-tier high-end medical device company in China. He has extensive experience in various aspects such as the R&D process of medical devices, laws and regulations, patent registration, clinical trials, and market application.