Find out what moves China tech with us. We round up what you need to know about the local venture scene every Thursday at 8:00 a.m. (GMT +8), covering major investment stories, MNC partnerships, noteworthy startups, industries with the most investments for the week, and more.
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Top Investment Story
Energy technology company Envision Group raised more than USD 1 billion in a strategic financing round from investors including Sequoia Capital China, Primavera Capital, and GIC. Envision Group is a green technology company with businesses in renewable energy, energy storage and management, and industrial digitization.
The company was the first in mainland China to commit to 100% renewable electricity by 2025 by joining the RE100 initiative in 2019. Its solutions enable corporate customers to use renewable energy in pursuit of net zero carbon emissions. The Shanghai-based company has a global network of R&D and engineering centers located across China, the United States, Germany, Denmark, Singapore, and Japan.
Startups on Our Watchlist
ProLogium (辉能科技)
ProLogium produces solid-state batteries used in electric vehicles. It raised USD 326 million from investors including dGav Capital, Primavera Capital Group, and SB China Venture Capital. ProLogium was valued at more than USD 1 billion before the latest investment and was exploring the possibility of an IPO in the US earlier this year through a merger with a special purpose acquisition company.
ProLogium specializes in the production of lithium solid-state batteries, which are considered to be safer and more efficient than lithium-ion batteries.
KrASIA News Picks
China’s manufacturing sector has been disrupted by the global chip shortage, highlighting the urgency for domestically produced semiconductors. The latest moves from China’s most valuable tech companies signal an alignment with the government’s directive to develop self-sufficiency in this field.
Companies including ByteDance, Huawei, and Oppo have each established their own semiconductor design divisions. Yet, China’s shortcoming is in chip production. National champion SMIC still lags behind its rival TSMC, and the gulf in technology between the two is measurable in years, not months, of R&D. Will the entrance of capital-rich giants like Alibaba and Tencent move the needle on China’s chip industry?