Chinese humanoid robotics startup PaXini Tech announced on Tuesday the completion of a JD.com-led investment that has brought its fundraising total in the last four months to 1 billion yuan ($139.3 million).
For the latest Series A-stage deal, PaXini roped in a group of domestic investment firms, including Shanghai Trust’s private equity (PE) subsidiary Puxin Capital and XGD Inc, a payment terminals developer listed in Shenzhen, among others.
Several existing shareholders like the state-backed investment firm Addor Capital and TCL Capital, the corporate venture capital (CVC) arm of electronics company TCL Technology Group, continued to invest in the latest deal, according to an August 5 statement by PaXini.
The deal saw JD.com join PaXini’s list of industry investors, including Hong Kong-listed artificial intelligence (AI) company SenseTime and Chinese state-owned SAIC Motor. The two industry giants, alongside other investors, picked up stakes in PaXini this June through their CVC units Sense Capital and Shang Qi Capital, respectively.
BYD, China’s No.1 automaker, also made a strategic investment of “hundreds of millions of Chinese yuan” in PaXini in late April.
The funding total of the three latest transactions reached 1 billion yuan, according to PaXini. Its shareholders also include Chinese automaker BAI Motor and clean energy company ENN Group.
Founded in 2021, PaXini develops multi-dimensional tactile-based commercial humanoid robots for applications across all walks of life, including consumer electronics, automotive, warehousing logistics, medical and healthcare, industrial manufacturing, and beyond.
The startup specialises in tactile sensing in robots that enable them to “feel” their environment and to perform tasks that require precision, adaptability, and interaction with objects. Its product line focuses on intelligent tactile processing units (sensors), dexterous robotic hands, and tactile-based humanoid robots, with multi-dimensional tactile sensing capabilities that PaXini claims to be “as sensitive as human fingertips.”
The transaction in PaXini marks JD.com’s latest deal in the embodied intelligence sector, after the e-commerce major booked a 15.8% year-over-year (YoY) increase in its Q1 net revenue, which reached $41.5 billion.
In July, JD.com joined investors including Chinese electric vehicle (EV) maker Xpeng-backed Rockets Capital and EV battery giant CATL in backing humanoid robotics startup Engine AI. In the same month, the firm announced a strategic investment in LimX Dynamics, another robotics developer in China, to collaborate in applying humanoid robots in retail, logistics, and consumer services.
