Shanghai X-imaging Secures Tens of Millions in Pre-A Funding to Advance Automated Testing and Inspection Technologies

VCBeat has learned that Shanghai Huixiang Information Technology Co., Ltd. recently completed a pre-A financing round worth tens of millions of RMB, jointly invested by Wutongshu Capital and Zero One Ventures. The funds raised will be primarily allocated to R&D investment, facility construction, marketing promotion, working capital, and corporate operations for Huixiang.Previously, Shanghai Huixiang secured angel-round funding from the Shanghai Zizhu Xiaomiao Investment Fund.

VCBeat has learned that Shanghai Huixiang Information Technology Co., Ltd. leverages imaging technology as its core competency, combining it with its industry experience in inspection and quarantine, testing and analysis, and biomedicine. The company is capable of detecting harmful chemical substances, bacteria, and viruses, with applications spanning safety control in food safety, life sciences, environmental protection, and biopharmaceuticals. It is committed to achieving informatization, automation, and intelligence in testing processes.

HuiXiang Business Layout Diagram (Image provided by HuiXiang)

As a company specializing in the automation of laboratory testing and inspection, Huixiang has served nearly 100 clients since its inception, delivering hundreds of automated testing and inspection systems for production, quality control, and scientific research. Currently, China’s automated testing and inspection market is still in its early stages, with substantial unmet demand. Compared to conventional laboratory automation companies, Huixiang leverages artificial intelligence technology to enter this market, positioning itself for significant future growth.

Compared with conventional laboratory automation companies, HuiXiang’s primary advantages lie in its end-to-end automation integration capabilities and intelligent data analysis and processing. Currently, HuiXiang’s independently developed intelligent networked system has achieved seamless connectivity, smart interconnection, and automated control for over 90% of the instruments and equipment available on the market.

Specifically, Huixiang has provided leading integrated solutions for laboratory automation and intelligence in the fields of biochemistry, healthcare and pharmaceuticals, and safety inspection and testing. Its product portfolio encompasses intelligent robotic workstation systems and full-process automated and intelligent integrated systems for inspection and testing laboratories in life science domains such as food safety and drug safety, along with supporting automated and intelligent instruments, equipment, and related consumables. The company also offers customized laboratory intelligence solutions.

In the context of SARS-CoV-2 testing, HuiXiang has also achieved high-throughput, unmanned viral detection and analysis, with full automation and intelligence throughout the testing process. This not only enhances the reliability and consistency of test data but also reduces safety risks and the risk of viral leakage during the testing process.

Core Product Image of HuiXiang (Image provided by HuiXiang)

Furthermore, Huixiang’s core team brings together senior experts from the fields of chemistry, materials science, medicine, mechanical engineering, electronics, software, and AI algorithms, as well as from leading international third-party laboratories and instrument and equipment companies, demonstrating strong interdisciplinary research capabilities.

For example, Dr. Liu Jiapeng, Founder and CEO of Huixiang, graduated from Shanghai Jiao Tong University with a major in Artificial Intelligence. He accumulated years of AI R&D experience at OMRON and Saint-Gobain, overseeing the development of more than 50 projects related to computer vision, chemistry, and materials. Dr. Yang Zhengwu, CTO, also graduated from Shanghai Jiao Tong University with a major in Artificial Intelligence, and has led core algorithm development for multiple key national AI projects under the National Basic Research Program (973 Program).

“HuiXiang integrates AI with biochemistry and high-throughput experimentation to provide intelligent, end-to-end solutions spanning from molecules to cells. Over the past few years, HuiXiang has been deeply committed to customer-centric innovation, earning widespread recognition from its clients,” stated Dr. Liu Jiapeng.

As one of the investors in this round, Wutongshu Capital focuses on high-quality enterprises that build high technological barriers and deep scenario applications by leveraging advanced technology trends (such as interconnectivity driven by the Internet and IoT, digital operational management enabled by big data and artificial intelligence, and robotic assistance and replacement of human labor).

Regarding this investment, Lu Youlong, Partner at Wutongshu Capital, stated that the inspection and testing industry is one of the fields with the highest entry barriers for laboratory automation. Downstream clients serve as public instruments of society and provide quality endorsement. XiangAI has addressed core pain points—such as high sample complexity, diversity within batch samples, stringent precision requirements, and traceability of reporting data—by leveraging advanced artificial intelligence and automation technologies, earning widespread recognition from clients at all levels. As a benchmark for the penetration of industrial technology into the sector, and aligning with industrial development, market demand, and policy trends, the company possesses substantial market potential.

According to HuiXiang, China’s import and export trade and domestic market are vast, with substantial quality inspection demands across all regions and counties from quality inspection agencies, customs, centers for disease control and prevention, food and drug administrations, and agricultural testing institutions.

Diagram of HuiXiang’s “Full-Process Automation” Solution (Image provided by HuiXiang)

On the demand side, taking the market penetration rate in clinical diagnosis and treatment as an example, the current penetration rate in domestic tertiary hospitals is less than 10%, while the penetration rates in other sectors, such as government regulatory agencies and third-party testing laboratories, are even lower. On the supply side, there are currently almost no domestic manufacturers capable of providing total laboratory automation (TLA) products that meet the required standards. Meanwhile, foreign manufacturers lack effective means and products to cover the Chinese market due to insufficient R&D and service capabilities.

Therefore, there is substantial demand for automated testing and inspection in the Chinese market, with promising prospects for development.

Based on this, Huixiang has first established its brand and gained recognition from major domestic listed institutions, regulatory bodies such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Customs, and Quality Inspection agencies across key provinces and municipalities in China, as well as leading pharmaceutical R&D institutions.

“These institutions have stringent access requirements. Their recognition of Huixiang not only affirms Huixiang’s professional capabilities but also generates a strong brand effect within the industry, thereby expanding Huixiang’s influence,” said Liu Jiapeng.

Regarding the development plan for the next three years, Dr. Liu Jiapeng stated that HueiImage will continue to focus on AI inspection robots, AI instruments and equipment, AI diagnostic systems, and reagents and consumables. From the perspective of the broader market environment, influenced by the current COVID-19 pandemic, viral testing and microbial testing will represent HueiImage’s next breakthrough in the field of public health epidemic prevention and control.

Wutongshu Capital is a capital group focused on investing in strategic emerging industries such as TMT, semiconductors, healthcare, and new energy and new materials. Its business primarily comprises three major segments: venture capital funds, industrial investment funds (in the fields of semiconductors, big health, and new energy and new materials), and funds of funds. As a leading domestic emerging private equity investment group, its limited partners include local government guidance funds, listed companies, financial institutions, well-known private enterprises, and private entrepreneurs. Its venture capital funds invest in early-stage and growth-stage TMT startups. Leveraging advanced technological trends—such as interconnectivity driven by the Internet and IoT, digitalized operational management enabled by big data and artificial intelligence, and the assistance and replacement of human labor by robotics—the firm structures its investments around the upstream and downstream sectors of manufacturing, including production, products, distribution, and vocational education. Covering investment stages from angel round to Series B, Wutongshu Capital strives to be a “sniper” for potential unicorns, helping startups in these sectors accelerate their development into emerging industry leaders.

Zero One Ventures was established in 2015, co-founded by Wu Yunlong, former partner at Matrix Partners China, and Zhao Yong, former COO of Kingnet Network. The firm manages two funds, one in U.S. dollars and the other in Renminbi. It currently focuses primarily on technology, enterprise services (including trading platforms, vertical SaaS, and supply chain solutions), mass consumer sectors, and overseas expansion.