Neural Galaxy Secures RMB 500 Million Series A Funding to Accelerate Leadership in Brain Science Industry

Recently, VCBeat (WeChat ID: VCbeat) learned that Beijing Neural Galaxy Technology Co., Ltd., a cutting-edge technology company in the field of brain science, has announced the completion of a RMB 500 million Series A financing round. This round was led by 3E Bioventures, with participation from TusPark Ventures, FreeS Fund, and Lightspeed China Partners. According to reports, the proceeds will be used to accelerate the research and development of its diagnostic and therapeutic products for brain diseases, advance the clinical trials and commercialization of the "Youdian" innovative therapy, and recruit and establish a large-scale, globally leading team in the brain science industry.

Founded in July 2019, Neural Galaxy was co-founded by Professor Hesheng Liu of Harvard Medical School, Professor Guoping Feng and Professor Robert Desimone of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (both Feng and Desimone are Members of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences), and Mr. Kecheng Wei. With the mission to "break through bottlenecks in brain cognition and overcome challenges posed by brain diseases," the company is dedicated to helping humanity understand, protect, and develop the brain.

Previously, Neural Galaxy completed a RMB 42 million angel round led by FreeS Fund in September 2019, a Pre-A round of over RMB 100 million in January 2021, followed by several subsequent extension rounds. Coupled with this Series A financing, Neural Galaxy has successively completed multiple funding rounds, bringing its total fundraising to RMB 650 million (approximately USD 100 million). As the lead investor for this round,Dr. Liu Qianye, Founding Partner of 3E Bioventuresstated: "Our investment focuses on unmet clinical needs and disruptive innovation. Globally, effective diagnostic and therapeutic methods for brain diseases are lacking, making breakthroughs urgently needed. Neural Galaxy's significant scientific breakthroughs and the synergistic integration of cross-disciplinary expertise are driving disruptive innovation in brain healthcare. In just a few months, we have witnessed Neural Galaxy's continuous clinical breakthroughs and rapid development. We believe that Neural Galaxy will conquer brain diseases and become a global leader in the brain industry."

In recent years, major global economies have substantially increased their investments in the brain science industry, and China has also designated brain science as one of the key strategic priorities for science and technology in its 14th Five-Year Plan. This initiative reflects not only a strategic layout to secure new commanding heights in technological innovation and foster new drivers of economic growth, but also profound expectations for advancing human health and well-being. According to statistics, patients with brain disorders account for approximately 11% of all diseases globally, with the associated societal burden representing nearly 30% of the total global disease burden. In China, the number of patients suffering from various brain disorders approaches 130 million, including 9.83 million with Alzheimer's disease, over 2 million children under the age of 12 with autism (with 200,000 new cases added annually), and more than 50 million patients with depression.

Most major brain disorders originate from pathological alterations in brain functional networks, yet effective therapeutic interventions remain largely unavailable. The primary obstacle lies in the profound difficulty of characterizing human brain functional networks and disease-associated neural circuits, which severely impedes the understanding of the mechanisms underlying these conditions. Over the past few decades, functional brain imaging has been widely employed as a research tool; however, it has failed to effectively resolve the core challenge of precisely localizing functional brain regions in individual patients, thereby making it highly difficult to translate research findings into clinically applicable technologies.

Neural Galaxy has pioneered a novel approach, achieving a major breakthrough in fundamental brain science research by developing what is claimed to be the world's first and currently only personalized Brain Functional Sectors (pBFS) parcellation technology. This technology precisely quantifies over 200 functional regions across the entire brain and is hailed as a turning point in neuroimaging. According to data provided by Neural Galaxy, in 2020, the company launched the world's only "Personalized Precision Brain Platform" based on this technology. For the first time, it enables clinicians to observe human brain function and connectivity at the scale of neural functional circuits at the individual clinical level. This novel, non-invasive, and objective assessment technology makes the effective treatment of brain disorders possible.

Neural Galaxy, leveraging its proprietary integrated R&D system encompassing "brain cognition," "brain medicine," and "brain-computer interaction," is efficiently driving the translation of basic research into clinical applications and accelerating the realization of original innovative technologies for the effective treatment of various major brain diseases. The innovative therapy named "POINT Therapeutics" employs a non-invasive bidirectional "brain-computer and computer-brain" interaction approach. By "reading, decoding, and writing" neural signals in the human brain, it enables precise detection, analysis, and diagnosis at the individual level. Guided by personalized brain functional areas, it achieves precise intervention for brain disorders. It is reported that Neural Galaxy is currently collaborating with multiple top-tier hospitals in China to conduct clinical diagnostic and therapeutic trials for various major brain diseases, including depression, Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, autism, and post-stroke aphasia. Compared with conventional treatments, breakthrough therapeutic outcomes have been achieved.

Professor Hesheng Liu, Co-founder and Chief Scientist of Neural Galaxystated: "Based on our breakthroughs in individual-level brain function research, we have made notable progress in understanding the mechanisms of various major brain diseases and in developing clinically effective diagnostic and therapeutic approaches. The translation of brain science from research to clinical applications requires extensive patient samples and financial support. Under the national strategy of building a science and technology powerhouse, the support and attention from government authorities, coupled with recognition from the capital market, have given us the confidence to take the lead in overcoming the global challenge of brain diseases and to emerge as pioneers in this field!"

Li Feng, Founding Partner of FreeS Fundstated: “As the lead investor in the angel round, FreeS Fund congratulates Neural Galaxy on completing its 500 million RMB Series A financing. In just two years, Neural Galaxy has achieved numerous milestones and transformations, advancing from its initial platform technology to the preliminary validation of efficacy for multiple major neurological disorders in clinical trials. Addressing unmet clinical needs in the CNS field, Neural Galaxy stems from major scientific breakthroughs and holds immense social and commercial value. It also stands as a quintessential example of a scientist returning to China to launch a venture. We look forward to Neural Galaxy delivering breakthrough diagnostics and therapies for conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease, depression, and stroke in the future.”

Qun Mi, Founding Partner at Lightspeed China Partnersstated: "Lightspeed China Partners' continued investment in Neural Galaxy reflects our confidence in its robust R&D capabilities and commitment to innovation. We believe that its non-invasive 'brain-computer and computer-brain' interaction technology for the effective diagnosis and treatment of brain diseases will achieve a shorter commercialization pathway, enabling it to genuinely help more patients and safeguard brain health at an earlier stage."

“In recent years, brain science research has been highly active in the global market, with startups across various countries poised to make their move.”Dr. Hongru Yang, Chairman of TusPark Venturesstated, “But we see that Neural Galaxy is backed by robust scientific and technological capabilities and possesses the strength to maintain its leading position, and we believe that Neural Galaxy will help bring about milestone transformations for human society.”

The breakthroughs achieved by Neural Galaxy are closely tied to the interdisciplinary background of its founding team. Its Chief Scientist, Professor Hesheng Liu of Harvard University, whose laboratory has published over 100 SCI-indexed papers with more than 13,000 total citations, studied Biomedical Engineering at Tsinghua University; Mr. Kecheng Wei holds dual master’s degrees in Electrical Engineering and Structural Engineering from Tsinghua University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. As an innovator in the IT sector, he holds over 20 patents in enterprise software, cloud computing, and artificial intelligence.

Currently, Neural Galaxy’s research and development team also boasts a highly interdisciplinary background, with members hailing from disciplines such as biomedical engineering, neuroscience, computer science, clinical medicine, electronic engineering, psychology, and child education. It is reported that Neural Galaxy plans to recruit 300 to 400 researchers, engineers, physicians, and healthcare professionals within the next few years to help fulfill its mission of conquering brain diseases.

“As a pioneering enterprise in the brain industry, we are actively building a professional, multidisciplinary R&D team and system,” regarding future development,Neural Galaxy Co-founder & CEO Wei Kechengstated, "Our goal is to lead a trillion-level emerging industry and serve as a growth platform for future industry leaders. We aim to foster a large cohort of professionals across diverse fields—ranging from team management to brain science, clinical diagnosis and treatment, software technology, data science, brain-computer interface hardware, and high-end manufacturing—enabling them to grow in tandem with Neural Galaxy. We hope more professionals aspiring to pioneer the brain industry era will join us to collectively advance this groundbreaking endeavor!"