Yaguo Medical Completes Tens of Millions of RMB Series A+ Financing to Advance Innovation in Respiratory and Critical Care Solutions

Recently, VCBeat learned thatBeijing Yaguo Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “Yaguo Technology”) has completed an A+ round of financing amounting to tens of millions of yuan. This round was led by Weifang Zhongke Haichuang Equity Investment Partnership (Limited Partnership) (hereinafter referred to as “Zhongke Haichuang”), with follow-on investment from Beijing Jinke Huiyu Venture Capital Partnership (Limited Partnership) (hereinafter referred to as “Jinke Huiyu,” the Jinke Junchuang Phase IV Fund).

This round of financing will primarily be used for product research and development, market promotion, and the expansion of domestic and international sales systems at Beijing Yaguo Technology Co., Ltd. It will help the company further expand its innovative R&D in the fields of chronic respiratory diseases and critical care, enhance the core competitiveness of its products, strengthen market expansion and ecosystem partnerships, and accelerate the deployment of multi-scenario applications.

Yaguo Technology, established in 2014, specializes in the innovation of medical devices and solutions for airway management and respiratory therapy. Upholding the caring philosophy of “Gathering the Fruits of Thought, Restoring Elegance to Life,” and leveraging advanced, safe, and efficient medical products and technical services, the company is committed to providing high-quality, comprehensive holistic solutions to healthcare institutions, patients with chronic diseases, and those with critical illnesses. Its goal is to become a leader in intelligent innovative medical devices in China.

Li Qian, Founder and CEO of Yaguo Technology, stated, “Since its inception, Yaguo Technology has been committed to making respiratory diseases no longer fatal through innovation, addressing clinical pain points and filling industry gaps with innovative technologies.” Guided by this vision, Yaguo Technology has made significant strides in the fields of airway management and respiratory therapy.

To date, Yaguo Technology has successfully established two core technology platforms:Airway Management and Respiratory Therapy Gas Circuit Technology Platform、Electrophysiology Technology Platform. Based on these two platforms, three product lines have been developed: critical care, innovative devices for chronic respiratory diseases, and an intelligent disease management system leveraging data and community engagement.

Yaguo Technology has been recognized as a National High-Tech Enterprise and certified as a Beijing “Specialized, Refined, Differential, and Innovative” (SRDI) enterprise. It has been approved to establish a Postdoctoral Research Station. The company has forged academic collaborations with dozens of top teaching hospitals in the field of respiratory medicine, co-established the “Beijing Respiratory and Critical Care Engineering Center” with Beijing Chaoyang Hospital, and engaged in deep academic and strategic cooperation with academician teams from two National Respiratory Medicine Centers. Multiple projects have received scientific research funding and domestic and international honors. Yaguo Technology has filed 61 patents, including six international patents, and established industrialization bases in Beijing and Suzhou. Its approved products are distributed across 30 provinces in China and exported to more than 20 countries.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) has become a chronic condition on par with hypertension and diabetes, constituting a significant disease burden. According to estimates from the Global Burden of Disease Study, COPD ranks as the third leading cause of death worldwide and the fifth highest in terms of global economic disease burden. In China alone, there are over 100 million patients with COPD, imposing a substantial social burden on the nation and society and severely affecting the quality of life for patients and their families.

As a novel physical therapy method for respiratory rehabilitation, the Respiratory Neuromuscular Stimulator is an innovative medical device approved by the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) and represents a global first. In addition to being suitable for chronic respiratory diseases, particularly chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), it demonstrates significant efficacy in treating respiratory muscle weakness caused by various other conditions.

To align with national policies and fit the three-tiered linkage treatment and rehabilitation scenario of hospital-community-home,Yaguo Technology has developed multiple versions of respiratory neuromuscular stimulators, including a hospital version, a primary-care version suitable for grassroots medical institutions, and a home wearable version for home-based rehabilitation.Among them, the home-use version is Yaguo Technology’s first product launched for consumer-end users. It addresses the needs of patients with chronic respiratory diseases in the stable phase for home-based rehabilitation by integrating smart technology into its design. Featuring easy wearability, portability, and intelligent monitoring, it enables smart rehabilitation at home.

The Respiratory Neuromuscular Stimulator product series leverages patient-side applications, Internet-plus technologies, and digital algorithms to collect data on treatment and rehabilitation from patients in the stable phase, track rehabilitation indicators, and optimize treatment plans through big data analytics and intelligent algorithms. This enables comprehensive disease management across hospital, community, and home settings for patients with chronic respiratory diseases, translating “novel physical therapies for respiratory rehabilitation” and “digital therapeutics” into practical rehabilitation outcomes, thereby pioneering new pathways for smart rehabilitation in hospitals, communities, and homes.

Furthermore, through the intelligent and data-driven services provided by Beijing Yaguo Technology Co., Ltd., data support can be offered for the tiered diagnosis and treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), strengthening the coordination between tertiary hospitals and community health centers, and establishing a healthcare model characterized by “minor ailments treated in the community, major diseases referred to hospitals, and rehabilitation returned to the community.”

In practice of the aforementioned model, Beijing Yaguo Technology Co., Ltd. has launched the “Regional Pulmonary Rehabilitation Pilot Project” under the guidance of the Beijing Municipal Health Commission and with the support of the Daxing District Health Commission, effectively integrating its technology into the tiered diagnosis and treatment system to enhance primary healthcare service capacity and promote the decentralization of medical services.

Li Qian has repeatedly stated in interviews, “There are only two outcomes in life: intubation or no intubation.” This remark may seem flippant, yet it reflects the current reality in intensive care units (ICUs).

In the ICU, patients on invasive mechanical ventilation often lack spontaneous breathing capacity, leading to pulmonary secretion retention and a high incidence of ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP). Clinically, physicians use suction catheters to clear secretions from the main airways; however, this method cannot address deep lung secretions and may cause complications such as airway injury and bronchospasm. Fiberoptic bronchoscopy is complex to perform and has limited efficacy, particularly in clearing slender small airways. Meanwhile, mechanical insufflation-exsufflation devices require disconnecting the patient from the ventilator, which poses significant life-threatening risks.

Beijing Yaguo Technology Co., Ltd.’s intelligent bionic sputum drainage system simulates the physiological cough mechanism of the human body, safely and efficiently clearing secretions from the deep lungs of patients. It can be used in parallel with a ventilator without discontinuing mechanical ventilation, thereby reducing the workload of medical staff and enhancing patient safety. The non-invasive operation avoids airway injury and significantly reduces the incidence of ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP).The product was recognized by Google X and the AAAS (American Association for the Advancement of Science) as one of the five Moonshot projects in the Asia-Pacific region, and was included in the “Key Export Products for Epidemic Prevention” list released by the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Economy and Information Technology.

In the field of critical care, the cuff pressure manometer, which has obtained domestic and EU certifications, is the first product in China to provide continuous cuff pressure monitoring. It can effectively reduce the incidence of ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP). This product also represents a significant step by Beijing Yaguo Technology Co., Ltd. toward intelligentizing critical care products and advancing toward smart ICUs. It has been included in the 13th Five-Year Plan textbook for Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Emergency Medicine, selected for the List of Urgently Needed Medical Equipment for COVID-19 Prevention and Control recognized by the China Association of Medical Equipment, and listed in the New Technologies, Products, and Services for Epidemic Prevention and Control released by Zhongguancun.

Meanwhile, the respiratory therapy workstation under development in the critical care field is the world’s first integrated medical dual-gas-pathway treatment platform. By breakthroughly integrating multiple innovative technologies, it enables various functions to operate at their optimal synergy, addressing airway management and respiratory therapy needs across diverse clinical scenarios. This achievement marks another milestone in Beijing Yaguo Technology Co., Ltd.’s journey of technological innovation.

During the pandemic, a series of innovative products from Yaguo were donated to 16 frontline hospitals, including Huoshenshan Hospital, Leishenshan Hospital, Wuhan Tongji Hospital, and Wuhan Union Hospital, playing a significant role in patient treatment and medical staff protection.

Since its inception, Yaguo Technology’s innovative products have been oriented toward intelligence and data integration. Its current product series in the fields of chronic respiratory diseases and critical care can store treatment data, enabling interaction among patients, healthcare professionals, medical institutions, and medical devices; furthermore, by leveraging big data and intelligent algorithms, these products assist physicians in diagnosis and optimize treatment plans.

In the field of chronic diseases, human physiological activities are regulated by electrical and chemical signals between the nervous system and organs. Existing chronic diseases can be viewed as dysregulation of electrical signals between organs and the nervous system; interpreting and correcting these electrical signals can play a role in preventing and treating chronic diseases, offering a new option beyond pharmaceuticals and vaccines. Therefore, electrophysiological technology can be applied to the intervention and assessment of human chronic diseases, holding great promise for their treatment and rehabilitation.

Based on the aforementioned principles, in addition to its existing series of respiratory neuromuscular stimulators, Beijing Yaguo Technology Co., Ltd. is currently further expanding its electrophysiology product portfolio, including abdominal medium-frequency interferential electrical stimulation devices for functional constipation and innovative peripheral nerve modulation devices for obstructive sleep apnea syndrome.

Li Qian, Founder of Yaguo Technology, stated: Moving forward, Yaguo Technology will continue to focus on innovation in the fields of airway management and respiratory therapy, continuously enriching its product portfolio and advancing the intelligence and digitalization of its product series. By deeply integrating smart healthcare with home-based rehabilitation, the company aims to further expand both domestic and international markets and increase the market coverage of Yaguo Technology’s products. Meanwhile, the company is committed to building a comprehensive talent development base that integrates industry, academia, and research, while continuously promoting the commercialization of R&D achievements.

Regarding this round of financing,The head of Zhongke Haichuang statedAs a sub-fund of the National Fund for the Transformation of Scientific and Technological Achievements, Zhongke Haichuang Fund focuses on implementing the national innovation-driven development strategy and actively promotes the transformation and application of scientific and technological achievements. The investment in Beijing Yaguo Technology Co., Ltd. is based on Zhongke Haichuang Fund’s specific understanding of the investment logic in the medical device industry: First, it seizes policy opportunities and targets promising sectors for independent innovation. Yaguo Technology shows promising potential in the fields of airway management and respiratory therapy. Second, validated by the pandemic, there will be significant demand growth for high-end medical devices in hospitals and convenient home-use medical devices. Yaguo Technology’s medical products are capable of addressing patients’ pain points and can be widely applied in various scenarios, including hospitals and community healthcare institutions. Zhongke Haichuang Fund will continue to empower Yaguo Technology through financial support and value-added services. We look forward to Yaguo Technology forging ahead and contributing to medical development through innovation.

Mr. Guan Xianyue, Head of Jinke Junchuang, stated: Yaguo Technology is an innovative medical device enterprise in China specializing in respiratory and critical care fields. The company has established academic collaborations with dozens of teaching hospitals in the respiratory field, and its independently developed intelligent airway management and respiratory therapy products align well with clinical needs. It is hoped that the Yaguo Technology team will continue to drive innovation through technological advancement, focus on addressing clinical needs, intensify R&D efforts in the respiratory and critical care sectors, consistently launch innovative products, and bring greater benefits to patients suffering from respiratory diseases such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

Weifang Zhongke Haichuang Equity Investment Partnership (Limited Partnership) is one of the venture capital sub-funds established under the National Guide Fund for the Transformation of Scientific and Technological Achievements. The National Guide Fund for the Transformation of Scientific and Technological Achievements was established by the Ministry of Science and Technology and the Ministry of Finance, with the aim of supporting the transformation of scientific and technological achievements—particularly those generated through fiscal funding—by setting up venture capital sub-funds. Under the guidance and management of the National Center for Science and Technology Risk Development, which is directly affiliated with the Ministry of Science and Technology, Weifang Zhongke Haichuang Equity Investment Partnership (Limited Partnership) is committed to providing equity investments in non-listed high-tech enterprises engaged in the commercialization of scientific and technological achievements. To date, it has invested in multiple domestically leading enterprises specializing in the transformation of high-tech scientific and technological achievements.

Jinke Junchuang Capital is a venture capital firm focused on investing in early- to mid-stage technology enterprises. It primarily invests in technology-driven companies fueled by technological innovation, helping to translate scientific and technological achievements into commercial value. The firm was honored with the “Star of Sci-Tech Innovation – Best Sci-Tech Innovation Investment Institution” award, selected by the STAR Market Daily. Its limited partners (LPs) include government funds such as the National Fund for Technology Transfer and Commercialization, the National Emerging Industry Venture Capital Guidance Fund, Beijing E-Town State-owned Capital Investment Operation Co., Ltd. (Yi Guotou), Changping Development Group (Chang Fazhan), and Daxing Investment, as well as private capital.

Currently, Jinko Junchuang manages four venture capital funds, each with a lifespan of 8+2 years. Adhering to the principles of avoiding herd mentality and blind following, we have made highly effective investment layouts in sectors such as healthcare and next-generation information technology. Among our portfolio companies, up to 58.5% are recognized as "Specialized, Refined, Differential, and Innovative" (SRDI) enterprises, with 18.4% designated as SRDI "Little Giant" enterprises.