Dialogue with Frees Fund's Ma Rui: Anchoring on AI to Explore Non-consensus Value in Interdisciplinary Fields

In 2025, China's healthcare investment market is struggling to find its way amid an overall recovery and partial cold spells.

When the Majority of Funding Flows into the AI Sector, Traditional Healthcare Tracks Encounter Structural Squeeze; However, an Institution Adhering to "Non-consensus" Investment Philosophy Breaks Through Against the Trend—FREES Fund Not Only Strengthens Its Leading Position in AI Healthcare with Benchmark Projects Such as XtalPi but Also Continues to Invest in Interdisciplinary Fields Like Neuroscience, Synthetic Biology, and Quantum Computing.

From the first-principles judgment of early platform companies to the identification of pharmaceutical genes in mature teams; from predicting the productivity revolution in AI drug development to strategic layouts capturing cross-industry cascade effects in materials and energy, Fengrui Capital partner Ma Rui showcased a comprehensive investment logic in his dialogue with VCBeat. This article will break down his survival strategies amid a capital winter and value anchors aimed toward 2026. Who can capture the next exponential opportunity at the intersection of technology and industry?

"If I were to summarize the primary healthcare market in 2025 with one sentence, Ma Rui, partner at Frees Fund, would say: 'Overall recovery, but still cold in some areas.'"

After a continuous decline in the secondary market over the past four and a half years, 2025 finally presents numerous exit opportunities, with a clear recovery trend. In comparison, while the healthcare primary market has shown some signs of improvement, it still lags behind the AI sector — "most of the capital has flowed into AI-focused directions." Although there has been a slight recovery in the total amount of healthcare investment, it remains lower than in previous years.

This structural differentiation has prompted Frees Fund to further clarify its positioning: instead of getting caught up in the intense competition of a red ocean, it is better to build barriers in AI-driven healthcare and interdisciplinary fields.

When asked about the core advantage of Frees Fund being selected for the "Future Healthcare 100 · Annual Healthcare Leadership Investment Institution," Ma Rui responded with full confidence: "We have quite a lot of expertise in AI-driven healthcare, or what we call AI4S." This advantage is backed by solid performance:

XtalPi: An early-stage investment project by Frees Fund, with a market value that once exceeded 50 billion RMB;

Agent Therapeutics: An early-stage investment project by Frees Fund, which has now grown into a unicorn company;

Frontier Layout: Made substantial forward-looking investments in the underlying models of AI + biology.

Ma Rui believes that we are currently at "the frontier of AI in biology where models are starting to explode, truly bringing productivity and value." The differentiation of Fengrui Capital not only lies in AI healthcare but also in the early stage and interdisciplinary fields, such as the intersection of biology and AI, materials and AI, and other crossover areas. "Funds that truly invest like us are not that many."

In 2025, Frees Fund has two representative investment cases in the medical field, which precisely reflect its dual-track investment logic:

Mature Team + Big Pharma Gene: REZUBIO

From the positioning perspective, REZUBIO is a typical innovative pharmaceutical company. What attracts us is that it owns a unique cell membrane chimeric drug design platform. The orally administered small-molecule metabolites designed by this platform can rival oral cyclic peptides, and may even be better and cleaner. At the same time, it targets large therapeutic areas such as metabolic diseases and autoimmune disorders.

In addition to the technology itself, the founder's experience is also an important factor that attracted Fengrui. The core members previously engaged in drug chemistry research at Merck for more than twenty years. They once led the PCSK9 oral cyclic peptide project and made significant contributions to the discovery and optimization of cyclic peptides, achieving ultra-high activity.

In summary, the key factors for evaluating the value of an innovative drug project are: strong pharmaceutical gene + experienced team + unique technology platform + unmet clinical needs + entry into clinical trials.

Early Platform + First Principles: Anranfei

This is a platform-based company in its early stage of development, focusing on the treatment of Parkinson's disease. They have developed a neurotransmitter endogenous regulation technology platform that directly physiologically regulates the secretion of target neurotransmitters for disease treatment.

As for why he dared to invest in such a company focusing on Parkinson's disease with a relatively high failure rate, Ma Rui said, "In fact, Anranfei is a typical investment target for Fengrui."

The entire investment decision is based on three aspects: First, the founder's deep understanding of the disease mechanism and having compelling data; second, based on insights from previous investments by Peakview Capital, such as Ubrain Galaxy and Shize Bio, we know that the Parkinson's market is undervalued; finally, the company’s technical approach makes sense from the first principles. It is precisely based on a comprehensive judgment of the founder, market, domain insights, and technical direction that we decided to invest in such an early-stage project.

"Placing bets on projects that differ significantly in two stages, tracks, and technical paths, Ma Rui summarized: 'These two types of projects are indeed different, but they also represent our two investment approaches. As long as the project and team have points that can move us, Frees Fund will make the investment internally.'"

As one of the earliest domestic investment institutions to bet on AI pharmaceuticals, FreeS Fund has a clear judgment on the current node:

“Some core AI models have reached the stage of becoming productive.。”

In the next 1 or 2 years, there may be a large number of disruptive companies emerging. Previously listed companies such as XtalPi and Insilico Medicine, as well as Metis Pharma which is steadily developing, represent the last wave of outstanding AI-driven pharmaceutical companies that have gained recognition in the capital markets. This also indicates that the industry is about to enter its next phase, where more AI-native companies will emerge—companies that can genuinely rely on the capabilities of a single model to produce results and truly generate productivity within the drug development process.

There are already quite a few companies of this type, such as using AI to generate antibodies with exceptional quality; for instance, leveraging downstream applications based on the AlphaFold3 foundational model. In recent years, an increasing number of models have reached a stage where they can be practically applied. "I predict that in the next five years, more excellent companies will emerge, and the AI pharmaceuticals industry has already entered an accelerated phase."

Regarding the qualitative change in model capabilities, Ma Rui observed two key breakthroughs: First, the improvement in generation accuracy. Current cutting-edge models can generate 20 molecules, and it’s highly likely that 1 to 2 of them will reach nanomolar-level affinity. This structure-oriented design allows molecular optimization, which originally required tens of thousands of experiments, to be rapidly generated with zero shots under AI assistance. Second, the breakthrough in drug-likeness: evolving from proteins capable of binding to antibodies, cyclic peptides, bispecific antibodies, and molecular glues with high druggability potential.

Companies with these AI capabilities can either advance their own pipelines or collaborate with others, and we should see some such companies after 2026. Correspondingly, this will lead to a shift in valuation logic. Drawing on Frees Fund's experience in investing in AI projects in the past, Ma Rui proposed the core criteria for evaluating AI pharmaceutical projects in 2026:

People: Whether the founder possesses "billion-dollar level" qualities;

Technology: Whether the model truly enters the "working" state;

Business Model: Shifting from "Charging by Token" to "Charging by Value".

Ma Rui also regarded AI pharmaceuticals as a confidence validation point, whose success heralds the broader penetration of AI into wider fields.

AI Empowerment Goes Beyond Pharmaceuticals: It’s Possible in Chemistry, Materials, and Physics. In the Next 1 to 5 Years, It Could Be Applied Across Various Industries. For Example, Battery Material Energy Density Has Only Increased Fivefold Over the Past 150 Years, but AI Combined with Wet Lab Experiments Could Boost Energy Density by 30% Within Two Weeks; Several Recent Nobel Prizes in Chemistry and Physics Have Been Awarded for AI-Related Research, Marking AI as a Significant Factor Driving Disciplinary Advancements.

Specific to the industry, Ma Rui believes that AI can make innovations from 1→100, which means industrial integration and amplification. This step is sometimes even more important than 0→1.

AI + China's Strong Innovative Drug Industry Chain = Productivity Amplification;

AI + Biomanufacturing = Reliable Molecular Design and Scalable Mass Production;

AI + Quantum Computing/Brain-Computer Interface = Fundamental Innovation and Industrial Integration.

AI itself is a scientific and technological breakthrough, but how it is utilized and how it generates productivity is the most crucial part. VCBeat is also putting forth substantial financial support for these projects. For instance, in 2025, VCBeat invested in a quantum computing project. And based on VCBeat's consistent non-consensus thinking, instead of choosing a mainstream superconducting technology path project, they opted for the neutral atom technology path to make a differentiated strategic layout.

For 2026, Ma Rui believes that the current exit channels for Hong Kong stocks are smooth, and the STAR Market is also expected to return to a reasonable increase in volume. If the state of the exit channels gradually normalizes, the encouragement for the primary market will be significant. This restlessness was already felt before the Spring Festival, but the healthcare track is not entirely moving in this direction yet, especially as the primary market remains under the chilling effect and downward pressure. The market cannot return overnight to the state of 2021, but conditions should further improve by 2026.

For entrepreneurs, Ma Rui offered two pieces of advice: First, regarding products/molecules, the progress of innovative drug pipelines and the uniqueness of the platform are areas that investment institutions will scrutinize deeply. Therefore, what advantages do your pipeline and platform have over others, and what unique value can these advantages bring? Second, concerning people, entrepreneurs need to possess the ability to endure through cycles. A simple logic is to reasonably control costs, anticipate difficulties in advance, and use limited funds to push the pipeline as far as possible, surviving until the day the capital market fully recovers. "If a company solely relies on investments but its founder cannot demonstrate the capability to break through difficulties and achieve self-sufficiency, investors will feel pressure too."

Speaking of expectations for the future, Ma Rui said: "In the past five years, China's innovative drug industry has become a strong industrial chain. In the past, drugs were mostly made in the U.S., but now most are made in China. Last year, half of the innovative drug BD deals involved drugs that were developed in China. I have very high expectations for this industry to develop more and better drugs, integrate with AI, and continue its high-quality development."

FreeS Fund’s investment landscape clearly follows a main thread of technological belief + non-consensus judgment + early深耕+ cross-sector布局. At the intersection of AI and biotechnology, they have invested in platform-level companies like XtalPi and剂泰, while also daring to support early-stage explorations such as Anranfei at the preclinical stage; adhering to the essence of healthcare (molecules, pipelines, clinical needs) while actively embracing the productivity revolution brought by AI.

By 2026, as AI-driven drug discovery transitions from a technological narrative to value realization, and as non-consensus opportunities become increasingly scarce in predefined scenarios, the value of this investment philosophy is likely to become even more prominent.

The 10th Future Healthcare 100 Summit 2026 will kick off in Shanghai from May 19 to 21. This year's conference focuses on the core of China's innovative healthcare assets, gathering over 8,000 industry and capital elites to explore the entire industrial ecosystem in areas such as digital healthcare, innovative medical devices, and novel drugs. The event aims to activate global value through diverse connections. Meanwhile, the Future Healthcare 100 Awards 2026 has been fully upgraded, with the application channel now open. We sincerely invite you to join the ranking, attend the grand event, and explore opportunities in healthcare innovation together!

As the core circle of friends for the conference and list selection, Fengrui Capital will also provide full support for this grand event.

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