Baikemy Files IPO Prospectus: A Pioneer in Authoritative Medical Science Communication with Backing from BAT and BlueRun Ventures

Medical popularization has always been imbued with a strong sense of public welfare. It combines the nature of content creation with the rigor of medical science. How can it also incorporate commercial viability? This is a question that Zhu Mengqiu, CEO of Baike Mingyi, has been continually contemplating.

As the sole designated website for the National Health Commission’s authoritative medical science popularization initiative, Baike Mingyi has witnessed a year-on-year increase in page views since its inception. It currently records over ten million daily visits and continues to experience growth. Many prominent domestic media content distribution platforms, including Baidu, Tencent, Sogou, Jinri Toutiao, Sohu, Qutoutiao, and China Search, have established content partnerships with Baike Mingyi.

Meanwhile, Baike Mingyi has also secured tens of millions in financing from BlueRun Ventures. The influx of capital seems to signal the significant commercial value of Baike Mingyi. Can it still uphold its public welfare mission? What are Baike Mingyi’s plans and development strategies following this round of financing? With these questions in mind, VCBeat conducted an exclusive interview with Zhu Mengqiu, CEO of Baike Mingyi, through whom we gained deeper insights into the story behind the company.

Zhu Mengqiu, CEO of Baike Mingyi

Around 2010, medical science communication was not considered a promising industry. It was not only arduous but also offered no foreseeable profitability, leaving few willing to undertake what was then perceived as a thankless task. At that time, however, one individual stepped forward, determined to assume this onerous yet publicly beneficial mission: Mr. Zhu Xiaobing, Founder and Chairman of Baike Mingyi (Encyclopedia of Famous Doctors).

In 2010, Zhu Xiaobing, who was approaching the age of 60, was determined to establish Baike Mingyi (Encyclopedia of Famous Doctors). Having survived cancer twice, he was driven by the desire to help more patients quickly and accurately access medical popular science knowledge, aiming to “enable ordinary people to navigate the confusion surrounding disease-related information.” Guided by this sentiment and an original commitment to public welfare, Zhu conceived the idea of creating a professional and authoritative platform for medical health education. With strong support from the National Health Commission of the People’s Republic of China and the China Association for Science and Technology, the Baike Mingyi website was launched.

Following its establishment, the team formulated detailed quality control standards and review processes for medical science popularization content in accordance with the Guidelines for the Generation and Dissemination of Health Science Popularization Information issued by the National Health Commission. Specific quality control requirements and implementation methods were developed for content categorized by format and medium.

In addition, to produce more truly valuable content, Baike Mingyi has made significant efforts in areas such as content creation and review.

From 2010 to 2016, over a six-year period of arduous entrepreneurship, Baike Mingyi developed a viable content production and operation model tailored to its unique characteristics, laying a solid foundation for a healthy corporate development ecosystem. During this phase, Baike Mingyi remained committed to the principle of focusing exclusively on producing authoritative, original content—a strategy that was steady yet conservative.

As the state has placed greater emphasis on science popularization and launched the Healthy China initiative, medical health communication has gradually become a blue ocean sought after by capital. After six years of accumulating authoritative, original medical content, Baike Mingyi has grown increasingly robust. In 2016, with Zhu Mengqiu joining as CEO, Baike Mingyi entered a phase of explosive growth.

Before joining Baike Mingyi, Zhu Mengqiu served as a visiting scholar at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in the United States, focusing on computer data modeling. As one of the most prestigious national laboratories in the U.S., it has produced 13 Nobel laureates. Reflecting on his experience in the United States, Zhu noted that while the past two-plus years of entrepreneurship back in China have indeed been demanding, they have also been immensely fulfilling. Witnessing the rapid growth and expansion of Baike Mingyi, he finds the hardships of starting a business negligible in the face of the joy and sense of achievement it brings.

After joining the team, Zhu Mengqiu spent three months strategically mapping out the development direction for Baike Mingyi. He observed that after years of growth and accumulation, Baike Mingyi had established a deep foothold and substantial reserves in the field of original content. Building on this foundation, he reconstructed the overall business development model and proposed the methodological principles of “standardized production, productization of content, and ecosystemization of products.”

After analyzing patient needs and clarifying the direction for popular science content production, Baike Mingyi established a specialized content production team encompassing content planning, review and proofreading, video directing and editing, technical support, data analysis, and media operations. It proposed a cyclical quality control model featuring the “BMPD Plain Medical Dictionary–BERU Editorial Guidelines–Three-Review and Three-Proofreading Process.” In terms of content format, it abandoned the traditional single-mode presentation of “text plus images,” adopting multi-dimensional formats including text, illustrations, audio, video, and animation.

Furthermore, to enhance production efficiency, Zhu Mengqiu reshaped productivity and business processes. She pioneered new content production models deeply integrated with AI technologies, including AI-powered review, deep learning for data analysis, automated process management, and knowledge graphs. Since then, the medical science popularization content of Baike Mingyi has officially entered the era of APGC (AI + Professional Generated Content by medical experts).

After solidifying its new development model, Zhu Mengqiu seized the momentum and enrolled in the “Microsoft Accelerator·Beijing” startup incubation program. At the Microsoft Accelerator Demo Day, Baike Mingyi emerged victorious from over a thousand applicant startups, achieving the highest score. During the six-month acceleration period at Microsoft Accelerator, Baike Mingyi not only received six months of free office space and substantial resource support from Microsoft China but, more importantly, gained access to comprehensive professional “acceleration” services, including corporate culture refinement, project process management, business model training, customer matchmaking, and technical guidance.

With the recommendation of Microsoft Accelerator, AI experts from Microsoft Research Asia collaborated with Baike Mingyi on AI-powered medical Q&A and medical knowledge graph projects. Hong Xiaowen, Corporate Vice President of Microsoft and Dean of Microsoft Research Asia, personally oversaw and facilitated the partnership between the two parties. On March 24, 2017, with the support of Microsoft Accelerator, Baike Mingyi won third place in the “Smart Medical Innovation Competition” (Zhiyi Cup) at the GMIC+CHINAMED Global Intelligent Healthcare Innovation Forum.

“Following this comprehensive empowerment and collaboration, ‘the support provided by Microsoft and Microsoft for Startups has elevated our core technical capabilities and product competitiveness to a new level,’ said Zhu Mengqiu.”

In 2017, Baike Mingyi officially launched its Series A financing round. Zhu Mengqiu received interview invitations from more than 20 investors, including BlueRun Ventures.

BlueRun Ventures, established in 1998, is an international venture capital firm focused on early-stage startups. Its investment portfolio spans artificial intelligence, big data, digital health and technology, AR/VR, consumer lifestyle services, and enterprise-level services. Mr. Chen Weiguang, Managing Partner of BlueRun Ventures, returned to China from Silicon Valley in 2005 to establish the BlueRun Ventures China fund and team. He was also an early investor in notable companies such as PPTV, QingCloud, Guazi Used Cars, Ganji.com, and Chunyu Doctor.

Since its establishment eight years ago, Baike Mingyi has remained dedicated to the creation and dissemination of authoritative medical science popularization content. This eight-year focus has enabled the company to accumulate substantial value in content quality. In the current internet landscape, where major search engines and self-media platforms serve as the primary channels for health information, the quality of online medical and health content varies significantly, making it difficult for users to distinguish fact from fiction. Recognizing this challenge, Baike Mingyi has, through years of concerted effort, secured prominent visibility for its high-quality original content across major platforms. Through these key entry points, the company has built a strong brand reputation and earned widespread user trust.

Chen Weiguang stated that this is one of the reasons why BlueRun Ventures values and has invested in Baike Mingyi. In his view, Baike Mingyi’s strengths lie in its authoritative medical popular science content accumulated over a long period and its vast resources of doctors and experts. These advantages are reflected in their strategy of entering the healthcare sector through the positioning of popular science, by continuously producing high-quality, authoritative medical educational content.Help the general public enhance their understanding of medical knowledge and create greater social value., steadily establishing its position as a leader in the science popularization industry.

Leveraging this position, combined with the team’s dedication, there is reason to believe that Baike Mingyi has the potential to become a key link in the mobile healthcare industry ecosystem.

In addition to providing financial support, BlueRun Ventures will progressively facilitate strategic services and team building for Baike Mingyi. It also plans to integrate other portfolio companies in similar sectors into a collaborative development framework. Regarding its growth trajectory, BlueRun Ventures aims for Baike Mingyi to seize opportunities by aligning with the evolving landscape and leveraging favorable national policies under the Healthy China strategy, thereby rapidly scaling up and strengthening its market position.

After eight years since its founding, the Baike Mingyi team has continued to grow and strengthen, with 60–70% of its members having medical training and professional medical backgrounds. When asked about their reasons for joining Baike Mingyi, Zhu Mengqiu stated that it is a highly public-welfare-oriented endeavor benefiting society. “The fragrance lingers on the hands that give roses,” she remarked, adding that this spirit represents the original aspiration and shared commitment that have brought all Baike Mingyi professionals together on this platform to pursue this mission.

Since entering a new stage of development, Baike Mingyi has been seeking a balance between public welfare and commercial interests, successfully achieving an organic integration of the two. Prior to financing, revenue from content licensing and collaborations with major platforms was already sufficient to cover the team’s operational costs and break even. After securing investment, many viewed this as another excellent opportunity for profit-making. However, in Zhu Mengqiu’s view, benefiting the public remains the top priority. Medical enterprises that focus solely on fame and profit will fail to earn users’ trust and will not achieve long-term sustainability.

“Why is it that this field is so well-developed abroad, yet there are few players in China? Ultimately, it comes down to excessive short-termism and the pursuit of quick gains. In today’s fast-paced society, most people prefer ‘short, flat, and fast’ approaches, doing whatever generates quick profits, which has fostered a rather impetuous atmosphere. Those with genuine passion and idealism are often mocked and regarded as foolish. However, I believe that one needs to take a longer-term view, especially in the healthcare sector. Companies and hospitals driven by short-term interests have all failed. Truly valuable endeavors are worth investing time in,” Zhu Mengqiu shared his insights with us.

On this point, BlueRun Ventures also stated,Baike Mingyi not only ensures the authenticity of popular science data to meet user needs, but also transforms such knowledge into commercial value. In their view, Baike Mingyi demonstrates a high level of strategic vision in this endeavor and is well-prepared for a protracted campaign.

Baike Mingyi has always upheld the standard of producing medical science popularization content akin to “textbook” quality. In an era where traffic reigns supreme, it is no easy feat to persist in creating standardized content that is accessible to the general public. Medical science popularization is a profession driven by integrity; it requires demonstrating to users that you are genuinely committed to providing valuable assistance. As with WeChat, which offers powerful features free of charge, such an approach can ultimately generate immense value.

“We focus on just one thing, so we remain undistracted. It is a pure endeavor, and we are committed to perfecting it.”

When discussing industry leaders, Zhu Mengqiu mentioned WebMD, a U.S.-based healthcare services website. As a channel for patients and physicians to access medical information online, WebMD is an industry leader in the provision of healthcare information and services.

In response, Zhu Mengqiu stated, “As a U.S.-listed company, WebMD serves as a benchmark, and its development model is worth emulating. Therefore, I believed that with firm determination and persistent effort, success would inevitably be achieved.”

For mobile health companies, if your goal is to become a link in the mobile health ecosystem chain and aspire to dominate this ecosystem, then identifying the most valuable user entry point on this chain and enabling all enterprises to coexist and develop together with you is highly valuable.

Regarding future development, Zhu Mengqiu expressed strong confidence, stating that the company will proceed according to its original plan and expects to complete its Series D financing in 2020. In terms of content, building on its current coverage of all diseases and symptoms, the company anticipates achieving comprehensive coverage of all medical content attributes by the end of 2019.