Robosen, a Chinese manufacturer of intelligent auto-transforming robot, has raised Rmb100 million ($14.5 million) in its Series A funding round, led by CMB International Capital Corporation (CMBI), an investment unit of China Merchants Bank.
In a statement, Robosen, founded in 2011 in Beijing, said the funding round also saw participation of Hu Yu, the co-founder and executive president of Chinese voice recognition products manufacturer iFlytek.
Robosen CEO Su Guoxing said the proceeds from the funding will be used for research and development of new products, talent recruitment, brand promotion, and global sales expansion.
In January, the company introduced an intelligent programmable and transformable robot, Robosen T9.
The robot is equipped with the highly-accurate gait recognition technology and 22 high-precision servo motors, enabling him to walk freely and steadily at a high-speed, 39 feet a minute, and to be highly flexible at the same time.
Using an advanced AI, the T9 can take on different shapes from humanoid to vehicle and perform complicated movements automatically.
“As engineers and programmers, we know the importance of giving youngsters a way to build skills for the future, but we know it is best to learn in a fun way. T9 is an incredibly useful tool for learning that engages children in a fun way,” Su said during the launch of Robosen T9.
The robot was designed to be an entertaining way to teach creative coding and programming, he added.
The lead investor in the funding round, CMBI, is an investment firm that seeks to invest through its subsidiaries in financial services, financial advisory, and investment banking businesses and in entities that have focused their investments in financial instruments, including derivatives and equity.
Its other portfolio firms include game live-streaming platform Douyu, United Imaging Healthcare, used cars platform Chehaoduo, and Bona Film Group.
In March, CMBI co-led the $70-million Series C financing round in Chinese clinical-stage biotech firm InventisBio Inc. Early this year, it led the $100-million Series B financing round in US-based biopharmaceutical firm Apollomics Inc.