Synthetic Biology Firm BaiKuiRui Secures Tens of Millions in Pre-A+ Funding to Advance High-Value Biomanufacturing

Recently, synthetic biology company Bai Kuirui announced the completion of its Pre-A+ financing round, raising tens of millions of yuan. The investors were Wanlian Daoyi (Tianjin) Venture Capital Partnership (L.P.) and Top Star Capital. In February this year, Bai Kuirui secured a RMB 50 million Pre-A financing round, led by Genesis Capital, with participation from Shenzhen Angel FOF, CAS Star, and Xiamen Fengxue.

Baikuirui, founded in 2019, has established a full-chain synthetic biology platform centered on precision protein design and protein molecular machine technologies. The company focuses on high-efficiency biosynthesis in areas such as skin health, therapeutic interventions for pet gut health, and biopesticides. By leveraging intelligent automated high-throughput screening systems combined with advanced gene-editing technologies, Baikuirui modularizes the research, development, and production processes of biosynthesis, significantly enhancing synthetic efficiency.

According to official information, Bai Kuirui is an incubator project of the Tianjin Institute of Industrial Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, located in the Tianjin Airport Economic Area. In 2021, the company settled into the Shenzhen Innovation Center for Engineering Biology and won the championship in the Pre-feasibility Study Track of the 2021 L'Oréal BIG BANG Global Beauty Tech Challenge. Currently, the company operates R&D and pilot-scale production bases totaling 3,000 square meters in Shenzhen and Tianjin.

According to Zhang Jiaquan, Co-founder and CEO of Bai Kuirui, the business models of synthetic biology companies fall into two categories: platform-based and product-based. The representative companies are Ginkgo and Amyris, both giants in the U.S. synthetic biology sector. The former builds an integrated platform for biological design and software development, providing R&D and manufacturing services to clients across various industries such as food, pharmaceuticals, and chemicals. It does not engage in the full process of product production and sales, nor does it rely on a single customer, but its revenue from individual projects is limited. The latter covers the entire value chain of “R&D, design, testing, production, and sales,” focusing on unlocking the commercial value of products in specific fields. While this model offers a higher profit ceiling, it heavily depends on product selection capabilities.

“In China, product-oriented companies may be more suitable, as they possess stronger self-sustaining capabilities and better risk resilience. Meanwhile, their well-established production and sales networks will become internalized as competitive barriers for the enterprises,” said Zhang Jiaquan.

Focusing on skin health and rare metabolic disorders, Baikirui has developed seven product pipelines, including functional peptides and functional proteins. The company advances its R&D through a structured pathway encompassing "pathway design, component design, strain construction, small-scale trials, pilot-scale trials, and industrialization." Notably, its CRO project for the biosynthesis of acrylamide has already achieved industrial-scale production with an annual capacity of 40,000 tons.

In the field of skin health, Bai Kuirui has developed phage-like bactericidal proteins to address challenges such as eczema and acne caused by skin microbiome imbalance, as well as issues related to biological preservation. The company has partnered with cosmetic giants like L'Oréal, and its products are currently undergoing pilot-scale production.

In the field of pet health, to effectively address common gastrointestinal issues such as enteritis and diarrhea in pets, Baikuirui has developed targeted proteins aimed at harmful gastrointestinal bacterial colonies, including Salmonella and Escherichia coli. Compared with traditional antibiotic therapies, these bactericidal proteins do not induce drug resistance nor disrupt the beneficial flora in the pet’s gut, thereby reducing the harm caused by antibiotics to both pets and the environment.

The third major business segment is in the field of biopesticides, focusing on developing biodegradable biosurfactants to replace traditional chemical surfactants, thereby enhancing pesticide delivery efficacy and reducing the environmental impact of conventional pesticides.

It is understood that the company's founding team comprises renowned Australian university-based biological scientists, PhD holders, and seasoned executives with extensive business management experience, boasting years of industrial accumulation in fields such as synthetic biology, artificial intelligence, and chemical engineering.

Zhang Wei, Executive Partner of Tianjin Wanlian Daoyi CapitalDriven by iterative advancements in foundational technologies, synthetic biology has been widely applied across agriculture, industry, healthcare, and other sectors. The integration of genetic engineering and bioengineering constitutes one of the most critical elements in this field. Baikirui possesses capabilities in precise protein design and protein molecular machine technology. By combining biological big data, machine learning, and rational design, the company develops powerful protein components that offer “plug-and-play” advantages. With a research team boasting solid scientific expertise and extensive R&D experience in the synthetic biology sector, as well as a well-structured patent portfolio, Wanlian Daoyi (Tianjin) Venture Capital Partnership (L.P.) believes that Baikirui will make significant contributions to the future development of synthetic biology.

Liu Zehui, Founding Partner of Top Star CapitalStatement: We remain bullish on the growth prospects of the synthetic biology industry. Bai Kuirui’s extensive downstream application scenarios and its transformation of traditional production methods align with Top Star Capital’s investment philosophy of “technology transforming traditional industries.” With a wide range of downstream applications, Bai Kuirui can create upstream-downstream synergies with our portfolio companies in the cosmetics, food, and health sectors. The founding team of Bai Kuirui demonstrates strong product commercialization capabilities and possesses profound expertise and accumulation in relevant technical fields. We look forward to Bai Kuirui leveraging its outstanding R&D and implementation capabilities to continuously enhance efficiency, empower development, and create value for the industry. We also believe that Bai Kuirui will become a successful exemplar under our “Healthy Living” investment strategy.