According to Qichacha, recently, the embodied intelligence robotics company, Galaxea AI(Suzhou) Co., Ltd., changed business registration.
As a leading player in China’s gaming industry, MiHoYo’s investment in an embodied intelligence company appears to be a “cross-industry” move. However, this reflects a well-planned strategy rather than a sudden shift. Galaxea AI has emerged as a rising star in the field of embodied intelligence robotics, attracting significant interest from capital and major industry players.
A Year in, Backed by Top Venture Capital
It is reported that before this round of financing, Galaxea AI had already received investment support from several prominent institutions, including the Beijing Robotics Industry Development Investment Fund, Baidu Venture, IDG Capital, SEE Fund, and GSR Ventures. Established in September 2023, Galaxea AI is an artificial intelligence company focused on creating “multi-form” embodied intelligent robots, covering end-to-end algorithms and scene implementation solutions through its fully self-developed stack. The company’s core team boasts impressive qualifications, with three of the four co-founders graduating from Tsinghua University. CEO Gao Jiyang graduated from the Department of Electronics at Tsinghua University, and the co-founders include Zhao Hang, an assistant professor and director of MARS Lab at Tsinghua University’s School of Interdisciplinary Information, and Xu Huazhe, an assistant professor and director of the Embodied Intelligence Laboratory.
Gao Jiyang completed his PhD in Computer Vision at the University of Southern California in just 3.5 years, making him the fastest PhD student in the 35-year history of the university’s IRIS Lab. After earning his doctorate, he worked at Waymo and Momenta, both leading companies in autonomous driving. Additionally, another co-founder, Li Tianwei, also comes from Momenta, bringing a wealth of experience in autonomous driving and artificial intelligence.
The core design philosophy of Galaxea AI is “Intelligence Defines the Body.” Although the company was established less than a year ago, it has successfully developed the vector-controlled chassis X1 and the ultra-lightweight mechanical arm product A1 using a collimating drive motor. The A1 mechanical arm achieves a maximum linear speed of 10 m/s, with a maximum end acceleration of 40 m/s² and a peak load capacity of up to 5 kg. In the era of embodied intelligence, Galaxea AI’s mechanical arm design breaks away from traditional industry solutions by focusing on high dynamics and large payloads, adopting an innovative approach based on collimating drive motors.
Building on these technologies, Galaxea AI has also launched the full-size wheeled biped humanoid robot R1. This robot supports omnidirectional movement and multi-space, multi-level operations, capable of performing complex tasks such as sorting, material handling, and inspections, showcasing its strong potential in the field of intelligent robotics.
The “Old Two-Dimensional” Company Loves to Invest in “Hardcore Technology”
Despite being a top player among domestic gaming companies, MiHoYo shows little interest in investing in the upstream and downstream of the gaming industry, instead favoring hardcore technology. After the success of Genshin Impact, MiHoYo began heavily investing in both upstream and downstream sectors of the gaming industry, supporting companies such as X.D. Network, OMESCAPE, Mojian Network, and Apeji Network, while strategically positioning itself in various aspects of game development.
At the end of 2020, MiHoYo changed its investment strategy, gradually shifting focus to the hardcore technology sector. The company has actively invested in cutting-edge fields such as cloud computing, brain-machine interfaces, nuclear fusion, semiconductors, and commercial aerospace. MiHoYo also established the Entropy Inverse Studio, led by Dr. Xing Jun, which is closely related to frontier technologies like brain-machine interfaces, further indicating its commitment to deepening its investment in hard technology.
Furthermore, MiHoYo has participated in hardcore technology investments through LP (Limited Partnership) methods. For instance, it joined the CVC Tongge Venture Capital initiated by GoerTek, becoming a member and investing in several technology companies, including the Tsinghua-affiliated AI company Infinigence AI, Shandong Semiconductor Equipment Company Sri Intellectual, and the XR startup GravityXR.
In September 2023, an important internal change occurred at MiHoYo, with Cai Haoyu stepping down as the legal representative and chairman, succeeded by Liu Wei. This adjustment is believed to accelerate MiHoYo’s pace in the hardcore technology field. The company stated that Cai Haoyu would focus on research and application of frontier technologies and devote himself to new project development and integration of domestic and international resources.
MiHoYo’s transformation reflects its long-term strategic planning in the hardcore technology sector. However, the abandonment of broad investments in the upstream and downstream of the gaming industry means that the company’s short-term revenue growth will largely depend on its in-house development capabilities.
Conclusion: In recent years, major domestic companies have been entering the field of embodied intelligence. Giants like Xiaomi, Baidu, and Tencent are actively laying out this promising market, whether through investments in emerging companies or through independent research and development. As technology matures and application scenarios expand, embodied intelligence is poised for robust development, and this industry reshuffling will bring more possibilities and opportunities.
