Apon Medical Secures Nearly RMB 100 Million in Series B Funding Led by Poly Capital to Advance Vascular Interventional Robotics

VCBeat has learned that Aopeng Medical recently announced the completion of its Series B financing round, raising nearly RMB 100 million. The round was exclusively invested by Poly Capital, with Haoyue Capital serving as the exclusive financial advisor. The funds will be used to accelerate clinical advancement.

Interventional Surgical Robot Operating Room

Founded in 2017, Aopeng Medical is composed of a highly experienced and exceptional team specializing in endovascular interventional surgical robots. Adhering to a clinical application-oriented approach, the company deeply understands surgeons’ operational techniques and the evolution of interventional procedures. Through continuous innovation and exploration, Aopeng has designed and upgraded bionic robotic arms that replicate surgeons’ manual operations, developing a pan-vascular interventional surgical robot system with cross-disciplinary coverage spanning coronary, peripheral, neuro, and oncological interventions. Furthermore, the robot offers enhanced operational precision and more intuitive human-machine interaction, enabling physicians to perform complex and precise intraoperative maneuvers while reducing radiation exposure.

This year, Aopeng Medical took the lead in completing type testing for its interventional surgical robot and achieved success in animal trials. In addition to coronary interventions, it pioneered the world’s first robotic procedures in three categories—neurovascular thrombectomy, filter implantation and retrieval, and aortic stent implantation—striving to build China’s open platform for pan-vascular interventional surgical robots.

According to statistics, there are approximately 3.6 million coronary intervention procedures performed globally each year, with nearly 1 million in China; about 2.3 million peripheral intervention procedures worldwide, including approximately 200,000 in China; and around 720,000 neurointerventional procedures globally, with about 120,000 in China. The substantial potential demand for interventional oncology procedures also urgently needs to be unleashed. The global market size for endovascular interventional procedures exceeds USD 22 billion, while the domestic market in China approaches RMB 30 billion, indicating a vast market scale.

Despite significant advances in interventional techniques, the fundamental methodology for performing interventional procedures has remained largely unchanged and is very similar to practices from 30 years ago. These procedures are conducted under X-ray guidance, requiring physicians to wear heavy protective equipment such as lead aprons. Prolonged exposure to X-rays inevitably results in radiation injury to physicians. Meanwhile, the millimeter-level precision of interventional surgical robots enhances procedural accuracy, ensuring patient safety and improving success rates. Overseas clinical studies have demonstrated that the use of interventional surgical robots can effectively reduce the incidence of adverse events following percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).

Historically, interventional physicians faced a steep learning curve and stringent training requirements. Traditional mentorship models failed to establish a precise surgical framework, compromising the accuracy and efficiency of skill acquisition. Interventional robotics are facilitating the decentralization of these advanced techniques. Aopeng Medical’s interventional robot features superior maneuverability and unique, high-precision force feedback, transforming procedural parameters such as length, angle, and force into quantifiable, multi-dimensional data. This capability more effectively promotes clinical adoption and streamlines physician training, thereby alleviating the shortage of interventional specialists in Chinese hospitals.

From a policy perspective, since 2014, the Chinese government has introduced a series of policies to support the development of domestically produced medical devices. These measures include the selection of high-quality domestic medical equipment, the issuance of new regulations on medical device supervision, and the launch of a special approval process for innovative medical devices. While strengthening support for domestically produced medical devices, these policies have also promoted the research, development, and innovation of medical device products within China. Technological innovations such as vascular intervention robots and navigation systems are driving interventional devices toward greater safety, accuracy, and efficiency, providing crucial technical support to domestic manufacturers of interventional devices.

As therapeutic robots, endovascular interventional surgical robots present significant R&D challenges and high entry barriers. The R&D team at Aopeng Medical has developed a general-purpose endovascular interventional surgical robot featuring a novel open-architecture design. In 2020, Aopeng Medical received national patent approvals for multiple innovations, including variable-channel and sequential-operation manipulators and surgical robots for vascular interventions, as well as electromagnetic damping screw-in force-feedback control handles for vascular interventions. The company was also included in the National Science and Technology Innovation 2030—“Next Generation Artificial Intelligence” Major Project, marking the first pan-vascular interventional surgical robot project in China. Focused on endovascular interventional surgical robots, Aopeng Medical is driven by clinical needs and ranks among the global leaders in technological innovation.

Following this round of investment, Aopeng Medical will accelerate its clinical progress. It is reported that Aopeng Medical’s endovascular interventional surgical robot, ALLVASᵀᴹ, recently completed the world’s first human clinical trial of robot-assisted endovascular aortic stent-graft intervention at Changhai Hospital, affiliated with Naval Medical University of China. The procedure was performed by Professor Lu Qingsheng’s team from the Department of Vascular Surgery at Changhai Hospital. With substantial accumulation in R&D, Aopeng Medical has taken the lead in completing the first-ever robot-assisted endovascular aortic stent-graft intervention in human history.

Aopeng Medical’s vascular interventional surgical robot is expected to obtain its registration certificate in 2023 and begin serving patients. By using Aopeng’s products, physicians will continuously innovate and expand the indications for these devices, while also proposing product improvement requirements based on diverse application scenarios, thereby driving continuous updates and upgrades of the company’s offerings. This model establishes a spiraling upward pathway from product innovation to clinical use, feedback, and further innovation. Aopeng Medical will continue to deepen its presence in the market for pan-vascular endovascular interventional surgical robots, leveraging its local foundation while maintaining a global perspective, to provide high-quality interventional medical robots and services to more customers both domestically and internationally, striving to become the “Da Vinci” of the endovascular intervention field.

Dr. Liu Daozhi, founder of Aopeng Medical, statedVascular interventional surgical robots, along with the AI-powered robotic-assisted interventional procedures they enable, will fundamentally disrupt the traditional paradigm of physicians performing minimally invasive interventions at the bedside—a practice that has remained largely unchanged for 40 years—marking the most significant advancement in interventional medicine over the past decade. Since its establishment in 2017, Aopeng Medical has continuously redefined the understanding of interventional surgery through its innovative technological capabilities, emerging as a global innovator in the field of surgical robotics. Aopeng Medical aims to develop and commercialize the world’s first AI-powered surgical robot.

Li Wenxuan, Deputy General Manager of Poly Capital, statedCardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases are known as the "leading killer" of the Chinese population, with the annual number of interventional procedures exceeding one million, representing a vast blue-ocean market. As China’s population ages rapidly and enrollment in medical schools continues to decline, the shortage of physicians is expected to widen, making interventional surgical robots an inevitable trend. Surgical robots are high-end medical devices characterized by high technical barriers, significant R&D challenges, and intensive integration of cutting-edge technologies. We are pleased to see that Aopeng Medical has entered the major track of endovascular interventional robotics through its globally innovative open-platform technology, thereby benefiting patients with cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. The Aopeng Medical team boasts extensive management experience, strong R&D capabilities, and profound expertise in interventional surgical robots, positioning it to continuously lead technological innovation. Poly Capital is committed to investing in innovative companies through rigorous analysis and providing comprehensive support to accelerate their growth, thereby contributing to the advancement of innovative medical technologies in China.

Mr. Ding Yameng, Founding Partner of Haoyue Capital, statedIt is our great honor to have assisted Aopeng Medical in completing this round of financing. We are highly optimistic about the interventional surgical robotics sector. Following laparoscopic and orthopedic surgical robots, interventional surgical robots are increasingly demonstrating their innovative value. With the introduction of a series of policies supporting domestically produced medical devices and the support of capital, interventional surgical robots are poised for an era of rapid development. The founding team of Aopeng Medical possesses strong multidisciplinary expertise in robotics, focusing on addressing clinical pain points in interventional surgery while pursuing excellent product quality and continuous technological innovation. With the support of Poly Capital in this financing round, the clinical trial process will be accelerated. We believe that once the company’s interventional surgical robot products receive regulatory approval and are launched on the market, they will greatly benefit a vast number of patients.

Poly (Hengqin) Capital Management Co., Ltd. is a private equity fund management company jointly established by Poly Developments and Holdings Group and Poly Investment Holding Co., Ltd. The company commenced operations in December 2015 in the Hengqin Free Trade Zone of Zhuhai and currently maintains branches in Guangzhou, Beijing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen. Since its inception, Poly Capital has adhered to the corporate philosophy of “Value-Oriented, Steady and Determined Execution,” innovating unique methodologies to steadily advance with firm conviction, grounded in delivering value returns to investors. Leveraging robust analytical capabilities and keen market insights, Poly Capital has pioneered innovative project investment models. Centered on private equity fund asset management, the company deeply cultivates industrial capital and strategically positions itself across two core sectors: real estate business and private equity (PE) business.

Haoyue Capital was established in January 2014, with a mission to serve as a bridge connecting China’s healthcare sector with capital markets. Its research and transaction coverage spans multiple sub-sectors, including innovative medical devices, biopharmaceuticals, in vitro diagnostics (IVD) and precision medicine, healthcare services, and smart healthcare. The Haoyue Capital team comprises seasoned investment bankers with extensive experience in China’s healthcare industry. By closely monitoring market dynamics and investment trends in the healthcare sector over the long term, the firm releases weekly healthcare investment updates and thematic research reports, offering Haoyue’s perspectives on new policies and emerging frontiers.