Ronovo Surgical Submits IPO Prospectus: Pioneering China's First Modular, Split-Design Laparoscopic Surgical Robot to Drive RAS Adoption

In 2000, the market was rapidly ignited after the world’s first da Vinci Surgical System, integrating the advantages of minimally invasive and precise surgery, received regulatory approval. Today, the global installed base of the da Vinci Surgical System has surpassed 7,500 units, while Intuitive Surgical, the developer of the system, reported annual revenue of $6.22 billion in 2022, representing a 9% year-over-year increase.

However, the da Vinci Surgical SystemThe installed base and penetration rate in China are both at extremely low levels.: In 2018, the da Vinci Surgical Robot, which had been promoted in the Chinese market for over a decade, had only installed 78 units of its third-generation product and performed merely 30,000 to 40,000 surgeries. Meanwhile, minimally invasive surgeries in China approached 10 million, resulting in a robotic surgery penetration rate of less than 1%.

On the one hand, the high purchase price of the da Vinci Surgical System limits the number of hospitals in China with the quotas and financial resources to acquire it. Additionally, the substantial per-procedure activation fees are typically borne out-of-pocket by patients, imposing a significant financial burden. On the other hand, the steep learning curve associated with robotic surgery has resulted in a limited number of physicians across China who are trained and actively operating the da Vinci system, with these experts concentrated primarily in the largest tertiary Grade A hospitals. Furthermore, da Vinci-assisted procedures remain predominantly focused on urology, with limited application in other medical specialties.

Considering the above factors, although the da Vinci Surgical Robot has monopolized the domestic market for laparoscopic surgical robots, it has not yet been widely adopted across multiple specialties.

Addressing the characteristics of the Chinese market and the challenges encountered by the da Vinci Surgical System, Dr. Ma Changzheng, former Global Senior Vice President of Intuitive Surgical, founded in 2019, leveraging his years of industry experience and clinical insights,Ronovo, China's First Modular Surgical Robotics Company—Hope toDriven by China’s disease spectrum and clinical needs, we pursue forward-looking R&D innovation and establish independent intellectual property rights., accelerating the multi-specialty adoption of laparoscopic surgical robots。

According to reports, Ronovo has innovatively launched China’s first modular surgical robot, developed based on the surgical scenarios of laparoscopic surgeons in China.Haishan Yi™, dedicated to meeting the practical needs of approximately ten million patients undergoing minimally invasive surgeries annually, 120,000 endoscopic surgeons, and nearly 10,000 hospitals specializing in minimally invasive surgery in China.

Dr. Ma Changzheng stated, “We aim to develop a surgical robot that is well-suited for the Chinese market and easy to popularize and promote, enabling more patients to benefit from the advancements in technology.”

Notably, since its establishment in 2019, Ronovo has successfully completed three rounds of financing, with investors including Lilly Asia Ventures, Vivo Capital, Matrix Partners China, GGV Capital, and LRI Jiangyuan Investment.

Ronovo has garnered significant favor from investment institutions because its core team boasts years of accumulated expertise and a strong track record in the fields of large-scale medical equipment and surgical robots. More importantly, Ronovo’s development philosophy and strategic vision have earned high recognition from investors.

Dr. Ma Changzheng stated, “Domestically produced surgical robots follow two development paths: one is to replicate the da Vinci Surgical System after its patents expire, achieving domestic substitution through advantages such as cost-effectiveness and localization; the other is to pursue original innovation based on clinical needs and the characteristics of the domestic market, developing surgical robots with independent intellectual property rights. Ronovo has chosen the more challenging second path.”

 Ronovo was deeply integrated with clinical practice from its inception, and its developed Haishan I^TMLaparoscopic surgical robots offer multiple advantages, including low acquisition costs, affordable procedure fees, a short learning curve, and applicability across various departments and surgical procedures, thereby better aligning with the demands of China’s clinical market.

Compared to the da Vinci system, which is representative ofIntegratedSurgical Robots,Hai Shan Yi^TMIt is China's first split-type modular surgical robot.，Composed of a master console, surgical arm carts in varying quantities, a 3D laparoscope, and surgical instruments.。

According to the introduction,Hai Shan Yi^TMLaparoscopic surgical robots adopt a modular design., the standard modular cart has a smaller footprint, eliminating the need for hospitals to separately expand operating rooms. It seamlessly adapts to the existing OR environments in Chinese hospitals, improving space utilization and enhancing team collaboration during surgeries. Meanwhile, modular carts offer better cost control, allowing hospitals to configure the number of carts as needed and flexibly combine different instrument sets. In particular, the greater spacing between surgical arms on modular carts provides significant advantages in specialties requiring larger operative fields, such as general surgery and gynecology, thereby truly enabling the multi-specialty adoption of surgical robots.

Additionally, Haishan Yi^TMIt also offers high compatibility.. It is understood that some surgical robots currently on the market are incompatible with the traditional mainstream instruments that physicians have been using for many years, requiring surgeons to re-adapt to robot-specific instruments and surgical procedures, which significantly increases the learning curve for doctors. Haishan Yi^TMIt can be used with Ronovo’s proprietary disposable wristed instruments and is also compatible with mainstream instruments currently used in laparoscopic surgery.

Using the dedicated disposable wristed instruments avoids infections and related complications caused by inadequate sterilization from repeated use, thereby reducing reliability risks associated with instrument reprocessing. Alternatively, using existing mainstream clinical instruments significantly shortens the learning curve and substantially lowers the cost of utilizing the surgical robot. This flexible approach meets the needs of surgeons at different stages of their practice.

In terms of imaging, most existing surgical robots provide only visible-light imagery during procedures, leaving intraoperative judgment heavily reliant on surgeons’ experience and lacking other decision-support tools. Haishan One^TMIt is compatible with both in-hospital 3D vision systems and Ronovo’s self-developed ICG fluorescence imaging system. The ICG fluorescence imaging system integrates multiple functions, including blood perfusion assessment, tissue identification, and tumor margin detection, thereby assisting physicians in making more scientific and precise clinical decisions.

Regarding the robotic arms, Ronovo has also optimized the structural design to ensure stable instrument movement while reducing the system’s footprint. This innovation minimizes the spatial requirements of the robotic arms while supporting multi-quadrant surgeries, significantly mitigating the risk of arm collisions—a common drawback of existing surgical robots in such procedures.

Currently, Haishan I^TMThe surgical robot has completed over 60 multi-specialty, multi-procedural animal and cadaveric trials, successfully passed third-party animal testing, and is poised to commence multi-specialty clinical trials in humans.

After experiencing Haishan Yi™, Professor Wu Dapeng, Deputy Director of the Department of Urology at the First Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiaotong University, commented: “Haishan Yi^TMThe laparoscopic robotic platform offers a surprisingly realistic 3D stereoscopic view, excellent master-slave manipulation fidelity, and well-designed surgical instruments that ensure operator comfort, effectively meeting surgical requirements. Additionally, Haishan Yi^TM“The unique modular design effectively overcomes the drawbacks of integrated robotic systems, offering significant advantages for performing cross-quadrant surgeries. We hope that Haishan Yi will be applied in clinical practice soon, benefiting more patients.”

Few would have known about Ronovo, founded in 2019, had it not been for proactive disclosure; the company only commenced formal R&D on Hai Shan Yi in 2021.^TM. In contrast, since 2021, Haishan Yi^TMRonovo took only two years from R&D initiation to passing type testing/GLP animal trials.

“Fast or slow is relative,” Dr. Ma Changzheng said modestly. “The core team members of an enterprise must have a clear understanding of when to move quickly and when to proceed with caution. For instance, after Ronovo was established, it did not rush to initiate conceptual design or prototype development. Instead, it devoted a year to in-depth market research to identify the unmet real needs in the surgical robot market.”

Since its inception, Ronovo has engaged in deep collaboration with leading clinical experts in China, seeking their advice and input throughout the design, iteration, and validation processes to ensure that clinical needs are met rapidly and accurately with optimal engineering solutions.

According to reports, Ronovo boasts an experienced R&D team comprising members from global companies such as Intuitive Surgical, Auris Health, Medtronic, Smith & Nephew, Nurotron, Hengrui Medicine, United Imaging, and KUKA. The core team members have made significant contributions to the design, research and development, manufacturing, and commercialization of surgical robots. Currently, the company has a workforce of over 150 employees, with 75% of the R&D team holding master’s degrees or higher, demonstrating strong R&D capabilities.

Furthermore, Ronovo’s core team possesses extensive industry experience. For instance, Dr. Ma Changzheng, Founder of Ronovo, previously served as Senior Vice President of Strategic Development at Intuitive Surgical, Global Partner at Fosun Group, and General Manager at GE Healthcare. He brings over 30 years of global leadership and management experience in the clinical registration and commercialization of medical and technological products. Co-founder Dr. Mao Ying was formerly the Technical Lead at Johnson & Johnson’s Auris Health, where he spearheaded system engineering and robotic control R&D for the Ottava soft-tissue surgical robot. He has 14 years of hands-on experience in the robotics field.

Solving Clinical Problems Through Innovation, Empowering More Doctors and Patients with Cutting-Edge Technologies. Ronovo is advancing rapidly, and the company has recently launched a new round of financing, with the proceeds primarily allocated to team expansion and R&D investment.